A group of gunmen from the Gulf Cartel tried to kidnap three innocent women who had just flown into the Mexican border city of Reynosa on a work assignment. The Gulf Cartel has been increasing extortion and kidnapping operations in the region following the border buildup by U.S. authorities, which made it more difficult for the criminal organization to operate its traditional smuggling model. The Gulf Cartel is one of six Mexican criminal organizations designated as Foreign Terrorist Groups by the U.S. government.
The incident occurred on October 1, when 36-year-old Lorena Cortez Villa and two other women flew into Reynosa, Tamaulipas, for work, according to local news outlet Hoy Tamaulipas. The women were in the process of leaving the airport to travel to a Holiday Inn in the city’s downtown area when a group of gunmen in various SUVs intercepted them.
The gunmen took the women’s belongings, cell phones, and money. The group tried to take all three, but ultimately took only Cortez. The gunmen threatened the two other women not to alert authorities or make any reports to authorities, since they had people there and would hurt her if they did. According to Hoy Tamaulipas, the family has not filed any police reports out of fear.
The Gulf Cartel has shifted its criminal business model to focus on extortion and kidnappings as a way to supplement its income stream after President Donald Trump’s border policies made human smuggling more difficult. The move has terrorized the border city of Reynosa, while state and federal officials not only avoid confronting cartel gunmen but also push doctored crime statistics as a way to claim that crime is low in the region.
The shift in the cartel’s operational model comes after the Trump administration shut down most of the asylum claims, which the cartel was using to move migrants north for a profit. Additionally, the buildup of law enforcement and infrastructure along the border has made it more difficult for the criminal organization to move its contraband through the Rio Grande, forcing them to move their loads through ports of entry.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s 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 News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.
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