Shorty’s long reach

By L.P., J.S. and T.W.

How cocaine conquered the world

HE MAY be only little, but Joaquín “Shorty” Guzmán, who was captured in Mexico on February 22nd, is reckoned to have run a big criminal business. Mr Guzmán, who spent 13 years on the run after escaping from prison hidden in a laundry cart, is said by prosecutors to have been the boss of the Sinaloa drug-trafficking organisation, reckoned to be the world’s largest. “Cartels” such as Sinaloa have helped to create a global market for cocaine, whose active ingredient is grown only in remote parts of Bolivia, Colombia and Peru. In recent years police have seized the drug in nearly every country in the world. Though its popularity shows signs of declining in some rich countries, emerging markets such as Brazil are developing a taste for the drug.