---
title: "Feds Scramble to Transport ‘El Chapo’ Guzman to NYC Trial, Could Close Brooklyn Bridge"
description: "A battalion of federal agents remains on high alert as the notorious drug kingpin is moved from prison to the courtroom."
date: "2018-11-05"
modified: "2018-11-05"
authors:
  - name: "Jerry Perez"
    job_title: "Deputy Editor"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/jerry-perez"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/24701/feds-scramble-to-transport-el-chapo-guzman-to-nyc-trial-could-close-brooklyn-bridge"
categories:
  - "Culture"
  - "News"
  - "People"
tags:
  - "bridge"
  - "Brooklyn Bridge"
  - "dea"
  - "FBI"
  - "Mexico"
  - "NYC"
  - "Traffic"
  - "War on Drugs"
---

# Feds Scramble to Transport ‘El Chapo’ Guzman to NYC Trial, Could Close Brooklyn Bridge

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2018/11/gettyimages-984420540.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

Traffic in Brooklyn will be more chaotic than usual this week, as court proceedings against notorious Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman Loera begin at a Brooklyn Federal Court on Monday. Given Guzman's current residence at a [high-security prison](<https://www.twz.com/20255/night-stalker-choppers-freak-out-manhattan-with-nighttime-low-level-training-exercise>) in Manhattan, Federal agents are scrambling to find ways to transport him to the NYC borough without throwing a wrench in the city's traffic flow.

Pretrial hearings held in early October forced law enforcement officials to close the Brooklyn Bridge up to twice a day as they transported Guzman to and from the courthouse located near the [Brooklyn Heights neighborhood](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/23683/man-arrested-for-torching-132-mercedes-benz-in-brooklyn-parking-garage-fire>) and his high-security residence. As a result, U.S. District Court Judge Brian Cogan announced that a plan to keep the high-profile inmate stationary in one location could be developed, but did not confirm its existence, according to [*USA Today*](<https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/11/05/el-chapo-brooklyn-bridge-might-shut-down-shuttle-drug-lord-trial/1889504002/>).

![message-editor%2F1541446765690-screenshot2018-11-05at2.06.30pm.png](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1541446765690-screenshot2018-11-05at2.06.30pm.png>)
**Google Maps**

![message-editor%2F1541446797777-gettyimages-1057651272.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1541446797777-gettyimages-1057651272.jpg>)
*Heightened security in Brooklyn., *GETTY**

Due to the unique features that surround Manhattan and Brooklyn, there aren't many alternatives should the Feds decide to transport Guzman by land. According to our own research on Google Maps, the only routes from the Metropolitan Correctional Center at 150 Park Row to the U.S. District Court on 225 Cadman Plaza include traveling on either the Manhattan or the Brooklyn Bridge. However, with the right permissions, the Coast Guard and Port Authority officials could allow a vessel to transport Guzman to Brooklyn, therefore minimizing the [impact to local traffic](<https://www.thedrive.com/article/24522/a-locals-guide-to-being-slowly-choked-to-death-by-traffic-in-new-york-city-in-five-vehicles>).

Should a judge approve of it, the most direct but also most vulnerable way to transport a man accused of masterminding a global narcotics empire would be via helicopter. The quick aerial exercise wouldn't impact the city's flow and could cause the least amount of disruption to civilians daily lives overall.

![message-editor%2F1541446820918-gettyimages-629261640.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1541446820918-gettyimages-629261640.jpg>)
*El Chapo was captured by the Mexican Army in December 2016., *GETTY**

"‘El Chapo Guzman is the world's #1 drug criminal," DEA spokesperson Rusty Payne told [*Forbes*](<https://www.forbes.com/sites/doliaestevez/2015/11/10/dea-maps-show-kingpin-el-chapo-guzmans-cartel-controls-nearly-the-entire-u-s-drug-market/#3b1b7152441b>) after his apprehension in 2014. "\[He\] has long been considered the #1 supplier of marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamines into the U.S."

"El Chapo" Guzman Loera is considered by many to be the most successful and ruthless drug kingpin in the world, having led the violent Sinaloa Cartel to record profits from 1989 to 2014. Guzman was featured on Forbes' "The World's Billionaires" list in 2009 and successfully escaped out of several high-security prisons in [Mexico](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/22596/united-states-and-mexico-reportedly-close-in-on-nafta-car-deal>) before being extradited to the U.S. in 2017.

## Author
Jerry is responsible for upholding The Drive's ethos as an audience-first, enthusiast-driven car blog that serves up industry-leading news, reviews, culture, and motorsport coverage. Overseeing a staff of writers and editors from his home base in Indianapolis, he helps curate the site's daily rundown, as well as its medium- and long-term content strategies. Jerry joined The Drive in 2018 as a writer and worked as news editor and managing editor before becoming the deputy in 2023. As a lifelong car enthusiast and racing fan, Jerry believes that all cars are cool, but the people behind the machines are even cooler. This belief often gives The Drive a slightly different focus from most other car sites, where we explore the humanity behind the machines. When he's not obsessing over the day's biggest stories or hanging out at a race track, Jerry can be found behind the wheel of a car, most likely sharing a laugh with his teenage son or daughter.

### Author social links  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/drive_jerry/>)