EL CHAPO DEAD AFTER SHOOTOUT IN N-WESTERN MEXICO?

(Ed.'s Note: Social media is reporting the death of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman in a shootout somewhere in the northeaster mountains of Mexico, according to Mexican government statements to the press. Speculation is running wild on whether Guzman is alive or dead.) 

From Al Jazeera
Fugitive drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman fled during a failed operation to recapture him in northwestern Mexico in recent days, injuring his leg and face, the government said.
Authorities said efforts to capture Guzman, whose brazen July 11 jailbreak saw him escape through a tunnel under the shower in his cell, have focused on the northwest region since last week after foreign governments shared intelligence information.
"Due to these actions and to avoid his arrest, the fugitive escaped in a hurry [in recent days], which according to the information that was collected, caused him injuries to his leg and face," the government said in a statement.
"The security cabinet continues to conduct all actions that will allow the recapture of this criminal."
US network NBC News reported on Friday that Mexican marines closed in on the Sinaloa cartel kingpin last week after US drug agents intercepted cell phone signals indicating El Chapo was hiding in a ranch in the Sierra Madre mountains near the Sinaloa city of Cosala.
Citing anonymous sources with knowledge of the operation, it said the troops raided the ranch with helicopters, but turned back after taking fire from Guzmen's gunmen.
The marines later went in on foot and found cellphones, medication and two-way radios. Guzman and his henchmen are believed to have fled in all-terrain vehicles, the network said.
Meanwhile, The Daily Mail reported that:
Mexican soldiers 'cornered' drug lord Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman in a mountainous region in Sinaloa, Mexico, after his cell phone was found and tracked by US drug enforcement agents, according to reports.
Authorities believe they located the notorious cartel boss last week, four months after his incredible escape from prison.
Law enforcement sources told NBC News that US agents were able to pinpoint Guzman's phone and traced it to the Sierra Madre mountain range, where they believed he was hiding out at a ranch.
Mexican soldiers then stormed the location, but reportedly found only the phone and some clothes.
They have then shut off 13 communities from Jesus Maria – 30 miles north of the state's capital Culiacan – to the nearby states of Durango and Chihuahua, in order to search the area.