New York (CNN) Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán headed a global narcotics empire greased for decades with corruption and violence, a prosecutor said Wednesday during closing arguments at the alleged drug lord's federal trial in New York.

To remind jurors of the mountain of evidence that had been presented to them since November, the prosecution stacked nearly ten cardboard boxes with the markings of the US Drug Enforcement Administration atop a plastic bag on the floor of the Brooklyn courtroom.

The display included weapons with evidence tags and one of the large cans of chiles that prosecutors say the Mexican cartel used to smuggle tons of cocaine into the United States.

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He has pleaded not guilty. Guzmán faces a range of charges , including international drug trafficking, conspiring to murder rivals, gun charges and money laundering.He has pleaded not guilty.

"Over 25 years, the defendant rose through the ranks to become one of the principal leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel," said federal prosecutor Andrea Goldbarg, visually matching the pieces of evidence to the multiple counts faced by the defendant.

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