Tagged: Tamaulipas

Authorities discover cartel mass grave near Texas

(BREITBART) — RIO BRAVO, Tamaulipas — The horrors of the cartel war in this border city have once again been revealed with the discovery of a new mass grave.

The find comes at a time when rival groups from the Gulf Cartel wage war for control of the region–leading to more than 158 deaths through gun battles, executions, and disappearances in Reynosa.

In an exclusive fashion, Breitbart Texas is able to confirm with law enforcement sources the discovery of a clandestine mass grave in a field near the intersection of dirt roads (brecha) 121 with 6 North in Rio Bravo.

Authorities discovered a shallow grave containing various nude bodies. The corpses had clear signs of torture, but were not in advanced stages of decomposition.

[READ MORE]

Drug traffickers use social media to spread terror near Texas border

(BREITBART) — CIUDAD VICTORIA, Tamaulipas — Cartel gunmen captured one of their rivals, tortured him, and used social media to disseminate a threatening video where they beat and behead their victim.

In the video, a group of hooded gunmen carrying various rifles stand before a kneeling, blindfolded victim and issue a short threat to the leadership of the Cartel Del Noreste faction of Los Zetas. The gunmen claimed to be part of the Vieja Escuela Zeta or the “Old School” splinter of Los Zetas.

Soon after the gunmen issue the threat, they beat their victim with their rifles and another hooded man runs in with a machete to begin hacking away at their victim’s head. The victim has been only identified as “La Conequilla” a member of the CDN operations in Ciudad Victoria. Photos and videos of the beheading were via social media. The various messages issued threats against Raul “Borrego” Gamez Moreno and Elvis “Morelos” Santiago, as well as their families living in Ciudad VIctoria.

[READ MORE]

Cartel gunmen burn corpses of rivals near factories at Texas border

(BREITBART) — REYNOSA, Tamaulipas — Cartel gunmen incinerated three of their suspected rivals in an ongoing war for the past three months that led to more than 137 confirmed deaths in this border city. The bodies were found near one of the many industrial parks–it remains unclear if the victims were alive when torched.

Authorities discovered the three bodies on a dirt road known as Brecha E99, where Tamaulipas investigators gathered evidence and photographs of the remains. The scene was near the Reynosa Industrial Park, a manufacturing complex that houses numerous international factories.

The factories that surround Reynosa provide thousands of jobs for the area. Most of those facilities manufacture parts or assemble products that are then crossed into the U.S. for international commerce. While not directly targeted, many of the plants have experienced issues with cartel operations, such as gun battles and finished product theft.

While authorities have not identified the victims, law enforcement sources revealed to Breitbart Texas that the victims are likely cartel members from one faction caught by rivals. Since May, two factions of the Gulf Cartel have been at war over control of the city’s lucrative drug distribution and trafficking areas, Breitbart Texas reported. The fighting causes almost daily gun battles, kidnappings, and executions that have killed more than 137 individuals–including innocent bystanders and law enforcement.

[READ MORE]

Gulf Cartel training camp discovered near Texas border

(BREITBART) — MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas — Mexico’s Gulf Cartel managed to build a training camp in this border city with guard towers, walls, drill areas, and a garage for outfitting vehicles with armor plating.

The camp was discovered by the Mexican Army during an enforcement operation in the rural areas southwest of Matamoros. Military personnel received anonymous information about a cartel camp and carried out a series of efforts to locate the training facility, information provided to Breitbart Texas by the Mexican Army revealed. Matamoros is a border city immediately south of Brownsville, Texas.

Cartel forces in Matamoros set up a series of blockades throughout the city to keep soldiers from reaching the camp. By the time that the Mexican army reached the walled facility, cartel gunmen managed to flee leaving behind weapons, tactical gear, armored vehicles, and other items.

The compound was surrounded by a wall and had a concrete guard tower used by lookouts to warn about any approaching rival forces. Inside, authorities found multiple structures including garages, workshops, and target ranges.

[READ MORE]

Mexican cartel extermination field found near UNESCO site

(BREITBART) — GOMEZ FARIAS, Tamaulipas — Human rights activists searching for cartel victims found an extermination field used by Los Zetas to bury and incinerate at least 500 near a UNESCO-protected ecological biosphere.

The extermination field was found in the southeastern part of Tamaulipas in the rural community of Alfredo Bonfil. The area is close to El Cielo Biosphere, a protected ecological site known as Mexico’s northernmost tropical forest and cloud forest region.

Breitbart Texas was able to confirm through Mexican court documents that Los Zetas members confessed to operating multiple incineration sites throughout the border state.

[READ MORE]

74 killed in weeks-long cartel war near Texas border

(BREITBART) — REYNOSA, Tamaulipas — The raging cartel war for control of this city resulted in at least 74 officially-counted murders. Many more victims have been incinerated just south of the Texas border.

In early May, Breitbart Texas began reporting on rival factions of the Gulf Cartel fighting for control of this border city. The continuing conflicts resulted in convoys of cartel gunmen roaming the streets looking for their rivals.

Overnight, cartel gunmen dumped a bloodied corpse with a posterboard where one cartel factions threatened their rivals. Bodies with warnings had not been seen previously in Reynosa. However, they are commonplace in Ciudad Victoria and in the border state of Nuevo Leon where Breitbart Texas has been reporting Los Zetas and other cartels are also carrying out massacres.

The violence spiked in early May, shortly after Mexican authorities killed former Gulf Cartel boss Juan Manuel “Toro” Loiza Salinas in late April. His death led to a power vacuum where his former allies are trying to fight off the another faction that appears to be favored by other cartel leaders. The ongoing fighting has led to a spike in highway robberies, armed robberies, kidnappings, and extortions as cartel commanders continue to look for ways to fund their ongoing war.

The raging violence by the Gulf Cartel immediately south of the Texas border led to the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) issuing an alert to agents that they represent regarding the cartel war just south of the border, Breitbart Texas reported.

The NBPC warned federal agents about the constant gun battles and the possibility of spillover violence or stray rounds fired in Mexico landing in Texas.

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2017/06/24/graphic-74-killed-weeks-long-cartel-war-near-texas-border/

Drug cartel delivers Texas truck full of bodies in Mexican border state

(BREITBART) — MONTERREY, Nuevo Leon — A faction of Los Zetas drug cartel used the bodies of their victims to deliver a message to authorities and their rivals in a suburb of this metropolitan area. Cartel members wrapped the bodies in black trash bags and left them in the bed of a pickup truck with Texas license places.

The case began when Mexican authorities responded to a highway interception in the suburb of Escobedo in regards to an abandoned SUV, information provided to Breitbart Texas by Nuevo Leon authorities revealed. When authorities arrived they discovered four bodies wrapped in plastic bags and a poster board with a cartel message signed by the Los Zetas faction known as Cartel Del Noreste (CDN).

As Breitbart Texas reported, rival factions of Los Zetas cartel have been fighting over lucrative drug distribution and trafficking areas. The fighting has led to a spike in violence where kidnappings, shootouts, and gory executions have become commonplace in the disputed areas. The fighting between the CDN and their rival the Los Zetas Vieja Escuela (Old School Zetas) has taken place in multiple cities in Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Veracruz and Nuevo Leon.

Preliminary information points to the CDN having used a white Nissan Titan with Texas license plates to move the bodies. The SUV has not been reported stolen in Mexico. In the bed of the pickup, the gunmen left the four bodies and used an ice pick to stab the message into one of the bodies.

[READ MORE]

36 killed in month-long cartel war near Texas

(BREITBART) — REYNOSA, Tamaulipas — Raging violence continues to take hold of this border city as rival factions of the Gulf Cartel fight for control claimed 36 deaths–including a bystander and one police officer.

As Breitbart Texas reported, the violence began in late April, shortly after Mexican authorities hunted down and killed regional Gulf boss Juan Manuel “Toro” Loiza Salinas. The death of the ruthless cartel kingpin led to an immediate power vacuum as various factions fight for control of the city and surrounding smuggling routes.

The fight has led to convoys of gunmen driving around Reynosa hunting for rivals. Some of the shooters ride in vehicles with “M-42” spray-painted on the side, indicating former allegiance to Toro. As Breitbart Texas reported, the violence has also led to a spike in crime as cartel gunmen carry out daytime robberies at various establishments and against unsuspecting motorists.

Over the weekend, rival gunmen clashed three separate times, spreading fear among local residents. In one of the clashes, forces exchanged gunfire in the Lopez Portillo neighborhood where neighbors reported that four gunmen died in the clash.

[READ MORE]

Mexican cartel using armored trucks in war at Texas border

(BREITBART) — REYNOSA, Tamaulipas — Mexican cartel members are using armored trucks in their ongoing war for control of lucrative drug trafficking and human smuggling routes near the Texas border.

Recently, Tamaulipas State Police officers seized a large truck outfitted with thick armor plating for firefights. The vehicles are commonly called “Mounstros” or monsters.

According to information provided to Breitbart Texas by the Tamaulipas government, police officers were patrolling the rural areas near Camargo, Tamaulipas, when they came across an abandoned warehouse. Camargo is immediately south of Rio Grande City, Texas.

When authorities inspected the warehouse they found a truck covered in armor plating as a makeshift combat vehicle. The truck had Texas license plates. It remains unclear if the vehicle was previously stolen.

[READ MORE]

Mexican cartel offers rewards for rivals’ heads

(BREITBART) — Mexico’s Gulf Cartel took to social media to announce a $500,000 reward for the heads of their rivals. The cartel made the offer on various social media platforms as cartel gunmen unleashed another wave of violence in this city.

On Friday afternoon, rival factions of the Gulf Cartel clashed in the streets of this city unleashing a barrage of machine gun fire and grenade explosions that spread terror.

The intensity of the fighting led to the city government issuing a red alert notice on social media. Officials pushed out the social media notification as a way to warn citizens to stay indoors because of battles spreading throughout the city.

Rival factions of the Gulf Cartel began a bloody war for control of this border city on Tuesday, Breitbart Texas reported. The fighting follows the demise of former regional cartel boss Juan Manuel “Comandante Toro M-42” Loiza Salinas.

Since then, various commanders loyal to him have been fighting the rest of the cartel in an effort to stop them from taking over the city.

[READ MORE]