He is the world's most-wanted criminal, with a US$5 million ($6.36 million) price tag on his head, his own army and tens of thousands of deaths on his conscience. Now Joaquin "el Chapo" Guzman, the leader of Mexico's pre-eminent drug cartel, has acquired something neither money nor violence can acquire: a pair of all-American "anchor babies".
Birth records reveal Emma Coronel, 54-year-old Guzman's 22-year-old wife, gave birth to the billionaire drug baron's twin daughters at a private hospital in California on August 15. Both are now constitutionally recognised as American citizens.
The Los Angeles Times, which tracked down their birth certificates, said Coronel left a blank space under "name of father".
The newspaper reported that FBI agents "kept tabs" on Coronel, a beauty queen from Mexico, who also boasts US citizenship, throughout her visit, but did not seek to detain her as she is not wanted for any crimes.
Although she might have been able to shed light on her husband's whereabouts, that information would have been of limited use. The Sinaloa Cartel leader stays in mountainous areas, surrounded by huge numbers of heavily-armed soldiers.
