Five Mexican Cartel Gunmen Killed South of U.S. Wildlife Refuge

RIO BRAVO, Tamaulipas — Five gunmen belonging to the Gulf Cartel died after an hours-long gun battle in Mexico, south of a U.S. Wildlife Refuge.

The violence began shortly after 1:30 p.m. in the Los Alacranes community in the municipality of Rio Bravo. The area is immediately south of the Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge in Texas. According to Tamaulipas law enforcement sources, the fighting took place along the rural roads that connects the border cities of Reynosa and Matamoros.

The fighting initially sparked between rival factions of the Gulf Cartel that were traveling in convoys of SUVs loaded with gunmen. The shootout triggered a large deployment by state and military responders. The violence ended shortly after 5 p.m. local time, killing at least five who died in or around a sand-colored SUV.

Breitbart Texas confirmed through law enforcement sources that the bodies of the gunmen were taken to the city morgue in Matamoros. Hours later, the border city of Reynosa became ground zero for fierce gun battles as rival Gulf Cartel forces clashed again.

Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to the Mexican 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 “J.A. Espinoza” from Tamaulipas.