Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán Claims Inhumane Conditions in Colorado Supermax Are Pushing Him To The Brink Of Insanity

In a series of unpublished letters obtained by Mexican media, Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, the former Sinaloa cartel leader and once one of the world's most wanted criminals, claims that conditions at ADX Florence, the federal supermax prison in Colorado where he has been held since July 2019, are pushing him to the brink of insanity.

ADX Florence is considered the most secure federal prison in the United States. It is known for housing the country's most dangerous inmates under the strictest isolation measures. Guzmán is serving a life sentence there on multiple charges, including drug trafficking, conspiracy and murder.

According to letters obtained by Milenio, Guzmán complains about a lack of access to educational programs, work opportunities and basic privileges. He says he is forced to spend nearly all of his time inside his cell, which he describes as a "sinister and dehumanizing environment."

"With no educational programs or work opportunities available to me, no access to the library, and only limited exercise time, I am left with practically nothing to do as the days pass," Guzmán wrote. "I spend my time doing nothing in my cell, surrounded by the same four walls, in a sinister and dehumanizing environment."

He also said that the Special Administrative Measures (SAMs) imposed on him are making him physically and mentally ill. He warned that the restrictions are driving him toward insanity and could even lead to a heart attack.

"The SAMs are punitive, and I am getting sick," he wrote. "I ask that they please remove the SAMs before I have a heart attack or go insane, because under the conditions I am currently living in, which are so cruel and inhumane, that is what will happen."

In eight letters dated between 2023 and 2024, which are part of a legal complaint he filed in a Colorado court against the U.S. Department of Justice, the Bureau of Prisons and prison officials, Guzmán claimed his captors are trying to kill him or poison him.

"I have complained several times about being woken up every night, after midnight, by a sudden blast of extreme hot air that lasts about 15 minutes," he wrote. "It happens four or five times a night and causes my heart to race. It does not let me sleep properly, and the heat increases my blood pressure."

In one of the letters reviewed by Milenio, Guzmán repeated his claim that prison staff are actively trying to kill him.

"I have experienced depression and memory loss, which are also symptoms of severe sleep deprivation," he wrote. "I have suffered tremendously in solitary confinement. My blood pressure has spiked to critical levels, leading to headaches and anxiety."

The former cartel leader also accuses staff of degrading and mocking him during legal visits.

"My lawyer has witnessed this. They always make me wear an oversized yellow jumpsuit when she visits, which is three or four sizes too big," he said. "I can tell the officers laugh at me because they dress me like a clown. What they do to me is humiliating."

Guzmán says he has repeatedly asked prison officials for psychological support but claims those requests have been ignored.

"I have no access to group therapy," he wrote. "I have no one to help me cope with the effects and trauma of solitary confinement. The BOP staff at ADX Florence have ignored all my requests for regular visits from a mental health professional."

Guzmán was sentenced to life in prison in 2019 and since then, he has been requesting for a new trial for years but all petitions have been rejected.

Earlier this year it was reported that Guzmán was cooperating with U.S. authorities by providing information on his former associate, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, apprehended in Texas last year and who pleaded guilty to drug-trafficking charges in late August.