The Gulf Cartel brought the city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, to a standstill after they carried out a series of attacks targeting a local city official and her two children, who sustained various injuries. Mexican military forces did not respond to the clash to assist state authorities in fighting the Gulf Cartel. The Gulf Cartel is one of the six Mexican drug cartels labeled as terrorist organizations by the Trump administration.
The attacks took place on Wednesday afternoon in Matamoros, when Nancy Galarza Coello, the head of the city’s Civil Protection Department, was driving her SUV with her children inside. At least two vehicles with gunmen tried to intercept her and began firing.
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Galarza and her two sons sustained multiple injuries during the attack and tried to seek help. Tamaulipas state police forces and agents with the state attorney general’s office rushed to the scene and began clashing with the gunmen. Information provided to Breitbart Texas by law enforcement sources revealed that Galarza Coello was able to get down from her vehicle and tried to seek refuge inside some nearby homes. The residents refused to open the door.
Emergency medical personnel eventually arrived and rushed her and her two sons to a hospital, where authorities set up a security perimeter.
State authorities continued clashing with Gulf Cartel gunmen who had tried to escape after the attack with help from other gunmen who began setting up roadblocks and throwing road spikes throughout the city. The actions caused large traffic jams in an attempt to slow down police forces.
During the shootouts, locals were forced to duck for cover as the gunmen fired indiscriminately down the street. Two Tamaulipas police officers sustained serious injuries and had to be rushed to local hospitals, where they were listed as critical.
The violence continued for several hours, as police forces clashed with gunmen. For a short time, international ports of entry shut down operations, schools cancelled classes, and most businesses closed their doors. The explosion of violence brought the city to a standstill, where locals remained indoors for the rest of the evening.
It remains unclear why cartel gunmen targeted the local city official who had taken over the city department in March. She is the first woman to be named to that position.
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 [email protected].
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 [email protected].
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