Mexican authorities arrested international drug trafficker, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, on Saturday morning, according to the Associated Press. 

Mexican marines carried out the operation that led to his arrest, with heavy involvement from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Guzman, 56, was found at a hotel in Mazatlán, where he was staying with an unknown female companion, CNN said. 

Guzman is allegedly the head of Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel and is considered one of the world's most powerful drug lords. In 2013 he was labeled "public enemy number one" by the Chicago Crime Commission. 

This takedown follows the arrest of Guzman's partner in running the cartel, Ismael "El Myo" Zambada in November. 

Authorities have been searching for Guzman since he escaped a high security prison in Mexico in 2001. The infamous criminal allegedly snuck out of the facility in a laundry basket and has eluded authorities for the past 13 years.

Mexican authorities arresting Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman (twitpic)

Following his escape, Guzman took on a leadership role in the Sinaloa Cartel despite having a $7 million bounty on his head and being on the DEAs most wanted list. 

He built an empire that allotted him an estimated $1 billion fortune, according to Forbes' Magazine. He has been featured on the Forbes' World's Most Powerful People list since 2009. 

Guzman's lucrative career has spanned decades and his drug empire spreads throughout parts of North America, and has reached cities in Europe and Australia. He now faces charges of federal drug trafficking in the U.S. 

Under his authority, the Sinaloa cartel established immense power by taking over remunerative trade routes to the United States and dominating notoriously drug laden cities such as Ciudad de Juarez. Guzman's fight for power with local cartels in Juarez spurred notable violence that has been hailed as a "bloodbath" by the New York Post.  

Guzman's actions only propel the ongoing Mexican Drug War, of which the Sinaloa Cartel is a key proponent. 

"El Chapo" (meaning "shorty") may be out of the picture now, but his cartel remains. 

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