Texas Guardsman Should Not Have Shot Gunman to Save Migrant, Says Mexican President

Mexico’s President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador criticized the actions of a Texas National Guardsman who fired at a suspected cartel gunman from across the border to save a group of migrants being attacked. Even though the Texas soldier saved the migrants from imminent danger, the Mexican politician claimed the shooting was an affront to his country’s sovereignty.

“They claim that it was to defend a migrant,” Lopez Obrador said. “That the wounded man wanted to hurt a migrant and that is why (the Texas Guardsman) fired, first into the air and then at him.”

However, when the Texas guardsman fired, he violated Mexico’s international rights because they can not fire a weapon across the border, AMLO said.

“We are looking at that,” he said.

️ #LaMañanera || El presidente @lopezobrador_ informó que en Estados Unidos ya se investiga a un elemento de la Guardia Nacional de Texas que disparó contra un migrante mexicano en Ciudad Juárez. El herido ya fue dado de alta. pic.twitter.com/KJ6Xtw317B

— IMER Noticias (@IMER_Noticias) August 31, 2023

The statement from Lopez Obrador confirms a report from Breitbart Texas where U.S. law enforcement sources stated that the guardsman fired when he saw a man with a gun on his waist swinging a machete at a group of migrants that were trying to cross the border.

The Mexican politician said that on Wednesday the wounded Mexican had been released from medical care. Local news outlets in Mexico identified the wounded gunman as 37-year-old Darwin Jose Garcia from Veracruz.

Despite the reason behind the shooting, news outlets in El Paso used the case to criticize the actions of the Texas National Guard and Texas Department of Public Safety. In Mexico, the news outlet Aristegui En Linea reported AMLO’s statements. Still, it only used part of the politician’s quote failing to add the comment that the gunman was trying to hurt a migrant.

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.