Cartel Gunmen Ambush, Kill Cops in Mexican Border City

Gulf Cartel gunmen ambushed a squad of police officers, killing two, in a Mexican border city that Tamaulipas government officials claim is safe. The killing comes after a full day of cartel blockades and shootouts that spread terror among locals.

The violence began in the early morning hours in the Mexican border city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, when cartel gunmen began carjacking vehicles and large trucks and parking them along main avenues to set up roadblocks and cause traffic jams. The use of blockades to cause chaos is a common tactic used by the  Gulf Cartel to trip up authorities during shootouts or operations where cops or military forces may be close to capturing a ranking cartel member.

Law enforcement sources revealed to Breitbart Texas that the violence began when authorities carried out a series of operations trying to capture a local Gulf Cartel lieutenant named Armando “El Pajarito” Lopez Garcez who is the acting plaza boss. In order to protect their leader, his chief enforcer Francisco Sanchez “Wero Motas” Nunez Rincon sent out his security detail to clash with authorities and to set up the blockades.

During the morning of shootouts, government officials did not report any fatalities but did confirm at least one arrest.  Sporadic violence continued into the afternoon and evening when authorities are believed to have come close to arresting Nunez Rincon during a confrontation, but he remains on the run.

On Tuesday afternoon, a group of gunmen in several trucks ambushed a squad of police officers in the Palmares neighborhood. While trying to fight off the gunmen, two police officers died, and the gunmen managed to escape.

Mayoral Candidate Leticia Salazar took to social media claiming that she was blockwalking in the Las Brisas neighborhood when one of the shootouts started. In a short video, Salazar claimed that she and her staff had to run for cover during the shootout and that a local family allowed her inside their home to wait out the shootout.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.