Mexican Border Governor Claims State is One of the Safest as Gunmen Overpower Cops

A convoy of Gulf Cartel gunmen surrounded a group of police officers and forced them to release their arrested comrades at gunpoint. The case took place on the same day that Tamaulipas governor publicly claimed that his state was seeing a decrease in violent crime and was currently one of the ten safest in the country.

On Friday afternoon, a group of more than two dozen Gulf Cartel gunmen riding in more than six SUVs surrounded a squad of Tamaulipas police officers. The gunmen held the police officers at gunpoint and demanded they release an unnamed cartel commander that had been arrested earlier in the day. In addition to the convoy of six vehicles, another convoy of 15 dark-colored SUVs rolled into the city from Valle Hermoso.

Así llegó el convoy en 6 camionetas Silverado negras a rescatar a civiles armados en #RioBravo frente a la refaccionaría Jomar en la Madero en #Tamaulipas pic.twitter.com/IzIFyQZMN1

— ElGuzman (@FuriaNegra77) March 24, 2023

The gunmen rescued their members with complete impunity and left the scene.

Just hours earlier, Gulf Cartel gunmen set up a clandestine checkpoint on the outskirts of Reynosa along the highway that connects the border city with the capital Ciudad Victoria. According to government officials not authorized to speak with media, more than eight gunmen riding in four SUVs set up the checkpoint. The gunmen were all wearing tactical vests and carrying rifles as they checked travelers with complete impunity. A second checkpoint was also set up in the city of San Fernando.

Durante el informe de febrero sobre incidencia delictiva por parte del Secretariado de Seguridad, seguimos a la baja en delitos dolosos, secuestro y extorsión y estamos entre los primeros 10 estados más seguros del país.
En seguridad nos estamos transformando.

— Américo Villarreal (@Dr_AVillarreal) March 23, 2023

The cartel rescue and the clandestine checkpoints came just hours after Tamaulipas Governor Americo Villarreal took to social media claiming that his state was seeing a decrease in crime and that the state was one of the ten safest in the nation.

As Breitbart Texas has reported, Villarreal has been singled out as having received campaign funding from the Gulf Cartel, the Cartel Del Noreste faction of Los Zetas, and fuel theft organizations during his run for governor. After getting elected, state authorities pulled back from directly fighting cartel gunmen claiming to be trying to decrease violence. As a result, criminal organizations increased their control over major cities in the state and their pressure on local businessmen through extortion and kidnapping.

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.