A border state governor is calling out Mexico City for its inaction against Los Zeta Cartel, currently terrorizing the northern regions of the country. The statement follows a brazen attack where gunmen killed a state police officer and injured several others. Federal security forces are largely absent from the impacted region.
Friday morning, a team of gunmen from the Cartel Del Noreste (CDN) faction of Los Zetas attacked a squad of Tamaulipas state police at a series of checkpoints in Nuevo Laredo. The checkpoints were established to contain convoys of gunmen in SUVs with mounted .50 caliber weapons and grenade launchers moving to and from gun battles.
After the last attack, Tamaulipas Governor Francisco Cabeza de Vaca issued a statement condemning the episode, adding that the murder could have been avoided. He called on the federal government to commit security assets to the region.
En una cobarde emboscada en #NLD, perdió la vida el policía estatal Raúl M. y resultaron heridos otros valientes tamaulipecos. Este desenlace pudo haberse evitado. La Federación debe comprometerse con la seguridad. Es su responsabilidad. Mis condolencias a familia y compañeros. pic.twitter.com/0R7B5e2a6L
— Fco. Cabeza de Vaca (@fgcabezadevaca) August 23, 2019
The statement comes days after the CDN pushed east into the border city of Miguel Aleman and clashed with the Gulf Cartel, setting off two days of battles. The incursion happened days after federal authorities removed highway checkpoints set up to stop cartel convoys.
In a similar fashion this week, the CDN, currently led by Juan Gerardo “El Huevo” Trevino, turned Nuevo Laredo into a war zone as they clashed with Tamaulipas authorities while displaying superior firepower–including mounted .50 caliber weapons, grenade launchers, and RPGs. The gunmen also managed to chase Nuevo Leon police from their positions and used explosives to torch a patrol car.
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.
Tony Aranda from Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project contributed to this report.
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