Capital Becomes Mexican Border State’s Deadliest City Two Months into Governor’s Term

Two months after a new governor took office in Tamaulipas, its capital has become the border state’s deadliest city. There have been six murders and numerous shootings in Ciudad Victoria since October as rival cartels fight fierce turf wars.

Governor Americo Villarreal took office on October 1 after a controversial election involving Gulf Cartel interference.

Soon after Villarreal’s term began, violence reignited in Ciudad Victoria as the Gulf Cartel and the Cartel Del Noreste faction of Los Zetas fight for control of the local drug trade and routes north. The struggle has led to six murders and shootings even though Villarreal vowed to end violence as part of his campaign promises.

One of the more violent attacks took place in mid-November when gunmen pulled up to a racetrack and fired into the crowd, killing two and injuring three. When the gunmen left, they left a cartel message on a poster claiming the races belonged to the CDN-Los Zetas. At the time of the shooting, there were hundreds of people in attendance to watch amateur car races.

The two fatal victims were working at the event as ticket takers. The three other victims were spectators. Soon after, authorities found a gunman’s torched vehicle.

Other recent, violent incidents include:

• On November 14, gunmen killed a couple who owned a junkyard on the city’s western side.
• On November 22, gunmen killed Maria de Jesus Eliezer Vasquez, reportedly in charge of collecting extortion money from local businesses.
• On November 29, gunmen killed 55-year-old Santiago Perez Reyes outside his home. Law enforcement information shared with Breitbart Texas suggests the street-level sale of narcotics was involved.

Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to Mexico City and the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León 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 various cartels that operate in those areas including the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas 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 “Francisco Morales” from Tamaulipas.