Breitbart Texas traveled to the Mexican border cities of Reynosa and Matamoros to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. The writers would face certain death at the hands of the Gulf Cartel if a pseudonym were not used. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and in their original Spanish. This article was written by Matamoros’ “JA Espinoza.”
MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas — Raging shootouts between rival factions of the Gulf Cartel have rained gunfire on this border city. In just one of the shootouts, one police officer and six cartel gunmen died, according to official reports.
Citizen journalists claim that the multiple shootouts resulted in more casualties and that the shootouts were spread out throughout the city. Innocent civilians were hijacked at gunpoint as gunmen set up roadblocks or used the vehicles in the rolling shootouts.
According to the information released by the Tamaulipas Government, in one of the shootouts a group of police officers came under fire in the Laguneta neighborhood. The shootout resulted in the death of Police Officer Andres Vargas as well as six cartel gunmen.
The official information makes no mention of the other gun battles throughout Matamoros.
The shootouts have taken place throughout most major neighborhoods in the city. Innocent civilians have been hijacked at gunpoint and fired upon as cartel gunmen try to set up road blocks or elude capture.
Moments of fear and tension were felt by Matamoros residents after cartel gunmen turned the streets into a battlefield leaving innocent bystanders injured in their wake.
The war between the two groups of the Gulf Cartel, known as the Metros and Ciclones, began in February as Breitbart Texas had previously reported. After an apparent ceasefire, once again the border city of Matamoros awoke to multiple shootouts in various sectors where Tamaulipas State Police officers sustained various casualties and had to have officers rushed to local hospitals with multiple gunshots.
Earlier this week Breitbart Texas reported on how a group of Gulf Cartel gunmen massacred an entire family in the nearby town of Rio Bravo. Authorities have not confirmed if these shootouts are related to that massacre.
The fierce gun battles took place in all of the main neighborhoods of the city including Chula Vista, Alamo, Leyes de Reforma, Rigo Tovar, Tamaulipas, Uniones, Carretera Reynosa, Azteca, Bagdad, Laguneta, Pedro Moreno, Buena Vista, Puerto Rico, Bagdad Sur, Ejido Las Rusias, and Tahuachal, as well as industrial city and various avenues.
According to citizen journalists, the first shootouts begun shortly after 8 a.m. as rival cartel members began to fight on the streets while setting up rolling shootouts.
Once Mexican authorities arrived, they were able to seize various vehicles filled with bullet holes. They also tried to help civilians who had their vehicles hijacked.
The shootouts lasted in an on-and-off fashion throughout the city for more than 5 hours. Mexican authorities have yet to release official information relating to ALL OF THE OTHER shootouts.
While unofficially citizen journalists claim that the fighting left more casualties Tamaulipas authorities in the past have minimized the out of control violence and reported only on the shootouts that authorities have taken part in while ignoring the fighting between cartel gunmen.