Mexico’s government remains impotent as the Gulf Cartel continues to spread terror through highways in the border state of Tamaulipas. Either for political beliefs or because of widespread corruption, local, state, and federal forces left residents to their fate as convoys of cartel gunmen freely roamed the state highways, clashing with rivals. In addition to the fighting, gunmen have also been carrying out carjackings, kidnappings, and other crimes targeting innocent civilians.
State government officials continue to claim that the violence in Tamaulipas is due to isolated incidents and that crime continues to decrease. Claims to the contrary are brushed off as attacks from political rivals. However, locals claim that is a complete lie.
One of the chief complaints is the lack of police and military patrol along the state highways that connect main cities such as Ciudad Victoria, Matamoros, Reynosa, and San Fernando. It is in those areas that factions of the Gulf Cartel have been waging a fierce turf war with minimal interference from authorities.
Last week, a citizen journalist shared a video on social media that captured the moment when a group of gunmen forced a man out of his vehicle and pushed him into one of their vehicles. That abduction took place in broad daylight, along a busy highway, and without any interference from police forces. Government officials have yet to release any information about the case.
Breitbart Texas spoke with a local man who was traveling in a passenger bus headed from Matamoros to Ciudad Victoria. According to the local who asked not to be identified out of fear, halfway through the journey, the bus turned back after being warned by the Gulf Cartel that there was going to be a shootout just down the road.
As the bus passed the city of San Fernando, they came across a row of trucks with gunmen on the side of the road. According to the passenger, another truck pulled up next to the bus, passed them, and cut them off. Gunmen got out of the vehicle and told the driver to turn back because they were about to clash with rivals down the road.
The driver turned around and headed back to the Matamoros bus station.
“During the whole way, we did not see a single police vehicle or anyone that we could tell them about what was going on,” the traveler said.
Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to Mexico City and the 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 their original Spanish. This article was written by “J.A. Espinoza” from Tamaulipas.
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