Mexican Army soldiers mistook a fleeing convoy of vehicles that was moving a large group of Middle Eastern migrants for cartel gunmen in the state of Chiapas. The subsequent chase and shooting killed at least four migrants, while some accounts point to six dying.
The shooting took place on Wednesday evening in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas along the highway that connects the towns of Villa Comaltitlan and Huixtla, a statement from Mexico’s Army revealed.
According to the military, a contingent of soldiers patrolled the roads when they saw a pickup that suddenly sped off. The fleeing vehicle was closely followed by two cargo trucks that gunmen commonly use the military claims in that region.
Two soldiers claimed to have heard gunshots and began firing at the fleeing vehicles. One of the trucks stopped, and when military forces approached, they found a total of 33 migrants from Egypt, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, India, and Cuba.
The information revealed by the military differs from local news accounts that claim that six migrants died and that the army chased down the fleeing human smuggling group for several miles and fired numerous times. As the army statement revealed, the driver of one of the trucks lost control, rolled over, and did not stop.
According to the Mexican Army, four migrants died, 12 others were injured, and 17 others were unharmed. However, according to local news reports, six migrants died, and nine were injured. The military forces provided first aid and rushed them to local hospitals.
The Mexican military revealed that the two soldiers who fired their weapons had been placed on leave pending investigations by federal authorities.
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.