A U.S. court said no to Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s request to review the life sentence he got in 2019. Guzman, who led the dangerous Sinaloa cartel in Mexico, asked for a second look using legal petitions, but the court denied it.

Judge Brian Cogan, who handled Guzman’s trial, explained that this case was a big deal and that the charges could’ve led to the death penalty if not for extradition terms. The court disagreed with the argument that Guzman’s defense didn’t properly explore a plea deal. They mentioned secret proof suggesting Guzman still controls billions of dollars, even if not in his name.

Cogan, who also said no to more legal help, pointed out that Guzman already had a lawyer named Mariel Colon Miro. The judge wondered where Guzman got the money to pay his lawyers and why his wife, who got out of prison in September, can’t access his money.

Now 66, Guzman is spending life in a Colorado prison where inmates are mostly alone for 23 hours a day. After escaping Mexican prisons twice, he got sent to the U.S. in 2017 and was found guilty of drug trafficking in 2019.

Even though Guzman is locked up, his Sinaloa cartel is still a big player in Mexico, run by his four sons, one of whom is also in the U.S. now.