BBC Sounds, music radio podcasts.

Hello and welcome to Beyond Today, a podcast from BBC Radio 4

where we ask one big question about one big story. I'm Tina Deheel.

Today L Chappo, what's the truth behind the legend?

It's been called the trial of the century. The Mexican drug lord El Chappos

been in court in New York for the past few months, accused of smuggling hundreds of

tons of drugs into the United States.

We're expecting a verdict very soon.

It may even have come by the time you listen to this episode.

Hi, I'm Netta Tofik.

I am the BBC's New York reporter and I have been covering the El

Chappo extraordinary trial right from the beginning. The trial of Wakin Guzman or El Chappo has been giving us the best glimpse

yet into life inside one of the world's biggest drugs gangs.

The Cinalloa cartel, named after the state in Mexico where it was founded.

Now if you wrote a Hollywood movie about a notorious drug lord, it wouldn't be far off what we've now found out about the life of El Chappo through the evidence

presented in court. Can I just ask? What does El Chappo mean? Does it literally mean the chappo? Oh, it means

shorty because he's short. Oh, really? Why has it been so extraordinary? I've covered so many different trials in New York and

what struck me immediately was just how different this was in terms of security.

I mean everyone knows El Chappo has gained this kind of mythical status for

evading capture for so many years and for escaping from prison in Mexico twice.

And so when he came to New York, the big question was what security was going to be in place.

There was really unprecedented security measures.

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