Tagged: Tamaulipas

Cartel violence kills 10 near Texas border

(BREITBART) — MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas — A series of recent gun battles and executions in this border city and in Rio Bravo led to nearly a dozen deaths as clashes with military forces and internal turmoil within the Gulf Cartel is reaching a boiling point.

The violence began last week in the Buena Vista neighborhood of Matamoros when cartel gunmen clashed with military and police forces. As usual, the fighting led to blockades, where cartel gunmen hijacked various vehicles to choke chances of police pursuit down main avenues. In Rio Bravo, troops killed several gunmen throughout the city.

The fighting and a series of apparent executions in both Matamoros and Rio Bravo led to the death of several men who are all believed to be part of one of the various factions that make up the Gulf Cartel.

In the downtown area of Matamoros, authorities responded to a local business where they found four men killed. The four cartel members had all been shot in the head execution-style.

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Mexican cartel gunmen murder toddler, family in shooting spree

(BREITBART) — CIUDAD VICTORIA, Tamaulipas — Cartel gunmen murdered a two-year-old boy and his family in the most recent execution in a trend of violence without end.

On Sunday early morning, a team of gunmen stormed a home in the Infonavit Aldama neighborhood, a housing project in the city.

The gunmen went around the perimeter shooting the four family members, including a two-year-old boy.

A series of graphic photographs obtained by the Cartel Chronicles project reveal in gory detail how the gunmen killed Jose Esteban Huerta, 37, his wife Yolanda de la Cruz Urbina (40), their daughter 19-year-old Yahaira Elizabeth Huerta de la Cruz and two-year-old Jose Ramiro Huerta de la Cruz.

As Breitbart Texas reported, Ciudad Victoria is ground zero for a fierce war between Los Zetas Cartel factions. Through executions, kidnappings, shootouts and other violent means, the rivals continue to fight for lucrative drug distribution territories and trafficking routes to the U.S.-Mexico Border.

Initially, the war was between the Cartel Del Noreste faction that primarily operates in Nuevo Laredo and the border state of Coahuila and the alliance of Vieja Escuela Z and Grupo Bravo. Since then, Grupo Bravo (now using the name Z) and Vieja Escuela have disbanded their alliance and now the three factions continue a war on separate fronts.

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Another fugitive Mexican governor faces new charges in U.S.

(BREITBART) — by Ildefonso Ortiz and Brandon Darby

MCALLEN, Texas — A cartel-linked fugitive Mexican governor who continues to be on the run is now facing additional charges after authorities unsealed a new indictment.

Breitbart Texas learned that federal prosecutors recently obtained a second superseding indictment against fugitive former Tamaulipas Governor Eugenio Hernandez Flores accusing him of multiple money laundering and bank fraud charges.
Video Families separated by U.S.-Mexican border meet at the fence

Federal authorities listed Hernandez as a fugitive in 2015 when they unsealed an indictment accusing him of conspiring to launder illicit sums of money and of funneling ill-gotten funds into the U.S.

The allegations point to Hernandez using a network of individuals to funnel embezzled funds and cartel bribes. The original indictment also includes his brother in law Oscar Manuel Gomez Guerra.

While listed as a fugitive in the U.S., Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office (PGR) confirmed on Monday that they do not have an arrest warrant for him in Mexico. Breitbart Texas published a leaked document that proves that the State of Tamaulipas under a previous administration had been assigning state cops to serve as the personal bodyguards for Hernandez and another fugitive governor named Tomas Yarrington. Despite being wanted by the U.S. Department of Justice, he continues to make public appearances in Mexico.

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Non-stop gun battles spark fear, uncertainty in Mexican border city

(BREITBART) — REYNOSA, Tamaulipas — The ongoing hunt for the leader of the Gulf Cartel in this border city has led to more than nine days of continuous gun battles. The clashes resulted in the deaths of at least 14 individuals –including most of the gunmen. Anecdotal accounts by residents place the death toll much higher.

As Breitbart Texas reported, Mexican authorities have been targeting the leadership of the Gulf Cartel in this city. Officials focused their efforts on capturing or killing Gulf Cartel leader Julian “Comandante Toro” Loisa Salinas, also known as Juan Manuel Loisa Salinas.

Law enforcement’s efforts to apprehend Loisa met heavy resistance from Gulf Cartel troops who continue to fight against military forces. Breitbart Texas reported that the intensity of the clashes escalated to the point where Mexican military forces deployed helicopters with mini-guns and other artillery weapons to fight off the cartel forces. During the gun battles, cartel gunmen continue to use hundreds of makeshift road spikes in an attempt to slow down authorities.

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GRAPHIC VIDEO: Mexican cartel at border preps to incinerate victims’ hacked bodies, plays soccer with head

(BREITBART) — MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas — A leaked video obtained by the Breitbart Texas shows a crew of Gulf Cartel gunmen preparing to incinerate dozens of murdered victims. They are also seen playing soccer with a human head.

The incineration of victims is a long standing practice that allows the criminal organization to avoid scrutiny as well as help Mexican government officials continue to claim low crime statistics.

In the leaked video, a man holding a cell phone claims to be part of the Gulf Cartel and that the group is cooking “rats” or rivals members. The man appears to be holding a beer on the other hand as he narrates in Spanish the fate of their rivals.

In the background of the video, various other cartel members can be seen punching holes in 55-gallon drums and placing rocks and body parts inside. One of the men then asks for a “spark” referring to a lighter. The man with the cell phone then begins to kick the head of one of a murder victim as if it were a soccer ball. Another is heard stating that in a village, Los Zetas members had played soccer with the severed heads of children.

The date and the location of the video remains unknown, however the method of incinerating the victims remains the same throughout Mexico. “Cooking” is a term used to describe the incineration of bodies by cartel members. The murdered victims are hacked into pieces and placed either in clandestine crematoriums or in 55-gallon drums where they are set on fire. The practice of cooking victims not only helps cartels minimize scrutiny but also helps Mexican officials claim that crime continues to decrease since incinerated victims are not counted as murders. According to Mexican officials, without a body, it remains a missing persons case.

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Cartel gunmen ambush Mexican border police with armored trucks

BREITBART) — REYNOSA, Tamaulipas — Cartel gunmen riding in armored SUVs ambushed a state police convoy killing one of the officers and sparking a series of chases and gun battles over a period of hours.

The ambush against the state police officers comes after citizen journalists in the border region known as the Ribereña or riverine have reported on gun battles involving large convoys of gunmen. According to residents, the gun battles among cartel factions started early morning in the area immediately south of Roma, Texas and quickly spread to other rural communities. The Ribereña is immediately south of Starr County, Texas and is considered a major drug trafficking route due to the lack of border security in the area.

Law enforcement sources consulted by Breitbart Texas revealed that the ambush took place about four hours after the initial gun battles in the Rancherias rural community near the city of Camargo, which is immediately south of Rio Grande City, Texas. A convoy of armored cartel trucks attacked police forces, setting off a fierce gun battle where one of the officers died. At the end of the clash, two cartel vehicles were left behind. One of the vehicles was a standard SUV, while the other truck was armored. Both vehicles had extensive damage from collisions and gunshots.

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