Latest news with #IrvingBarriosMojica
Saudi Gazette
5 days ago
- Saudi Gazette
Five musicians murdered in suspected Mexican cartel killing
MEXICO CITY — Five musicians who disappeared in the Mexican city of Reynosa, near the US border, were murdered by suspected drug cartel members, Mexican authorities have said. Nine alleged members of the notorious Gulf Cartel have been arrested on suspicion of murder, according to Irving Barrios Mojica, attorney general for the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. The musicians, known as Grupo Fugitivo, were kidnapped while traveling to a private event on 25 May, Barrios Mojica said. Soon after, their relatives reported receiving ransom demands. Investigators are working to establish a motive for the killings. The musicians were aged between 20 and 40, and often played at local parties and dances. Nine firearms and two vehicles were also seized during the arrests. Grupo Fugitivo performed a range of regional Mexican music, a genre which includes corridos — songs that have historically been used to pay homage to drug cartels and their leaders. It is not immediately clear if the group was targeted because of their music, or were caught up in the violence that has long beset Tamaulipas, where the Gulf Cartel has a strong presence. The Trump administration has designated the Gulf Cartel, alongside several other criminal groups, a "global terrorist organization". In January, the US embassy in Mexico issued a level 4 travel advisory, the highest level, warning its citizens not to travel to several Mexican cities, including Reynosa. It cited the risk of "crime and kidnapping" and "increasingly frequent gun battles occurring in and around" the city. "Heavily armed members of criminal groups often patrol areas of the state and operate with impunity particularly along the border region from Reynosa to Nuevo Laredo," the US state department said. "In these areas, local law enforcement has limited capacity to respond to incidents of crime." — BBC
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Five musicians murdered in suspected Mexican cartel killing
Five musicians who disappeared in the Mexican city of Reynosa, near the US border, were murdered by suspected drug cartel members, Mexican authorities have said. Nine alleged members of the notorious Gulf Cartel have been arrested on suspicion of murder, according to Irving Barrios Mojica, attorney general for the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. The musicians - known as Grupo Fugitivo - were kidnapped while travelling to a private event on 25 May, Barrios Mojica said. Soon after, their relatives reported receiving ransom demands. Investigators are working to establish a motive for the killings. The musicians were aged between 20 and 40, and often played at local parties and dances. Nine firearms and two vehicles were also seized during the arrests. Grupo Fugitivo performed a range of regional Mexican music, a genre which includes corridos - songs that have historically been used to pay homage to drug cartels and their leaders. It is not immediately clear if the group was targeted because of their music, or were caught up in the violence that has long beset Tamaulipas, where the Gulf Cartel has a strong presence. The Trump administration has designated the Gulf Cartel, alongside several other criminal groups, a "global terrorist organisation". In January, the US embassy in Mexico issued a level 4 travel advisory, the highest level, warning its citizens not to travel to several Mexican cities, including Reynosa. It cited the risk of "crime and kidnapping" and "increasingly frequent gun battles occurring in and around" the city. "Heavily armed members of criminal groups often patrol areas of the state and operate with impunity particularly along the border region from Reynosa to Nuevo Laredo," the US state department said. "In these areas, local law enforcement has limited capacity to respond to incidents of crime." Rare footage of a cartel gun battle near US-Mexico border Seven Mexican youths shot dead at church festivity
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
5 missing band members found slain in Mexican border town; authorities blame Gulf cartel
Among their last social media posts were photos of the five band members posing at the international bridge leading across the Rio Grande from their hometown, the Mexican border city of Reynosa. "We'll see you in a little while in McAllen, Texas," read the caption, which went on to express the group's hope to perform one day in the United States, following the path of many regional Mexican ensembles that have found binational success. Those images on the bridge were among the last public sightings of the members of El Fugitivo, a group of local musicians, mostly in their 20s, who worked the border circuit, playing ranchera tunes and plaintive corridos, or ballads. The five dropped out of sight Sunday evening in Reynosa. Their disappearance in the dangerous border town in the state of Tamaulipas — a mostly cartel-controlled area infamous for massacres and kidnappings — alarmed relatives and friends, who staged demonstrations this week to demand their safe return. Demonstrators staged rallies on a pair of border bridges and at other sites in Reynosa. But it was all for naught: On Thursday, Tamaulipas prosecutors confirmed that authorities had discovered the bodies of the five at an unspecified site in Reynosa. Authorities have made nine arrests in the slayings, Irving Barrios Mojica, the attorney general of Tamaulipas state, told journalists at an afternoon news conference. He blamed the slayings on Gulf cartel, which reigns supreme in the area, but gave no motive for the homicides. Nor did the prosecutor say how the five were killed or specify where the bodies were found. The five were kidnapped at 10 p.m. Sunday, the district attorney said, apparently while en route to a private engagement in Reynosa. Forensic examination of the site is continuing, the district attorney said. Tamaulipas — bordering Texas and the Gulf of Mexico — is widely considered among the most dangerous states in Mexico. It has long had one of the country's highest rates of homicides and disappearances. Tamaulipas is also the site of two of the most grisly massacres in recent Mexican history — the slayings of at least 265 U.S.-bound migrants in two separate mass killings more than a decade ago in the municipality of San Fernando. Authorities blamed the Zetas gang. The U.S. State Department urges U.S. citizens to not travel to Tamaulipas, citing the threat of crime and kidnapping."Heavily armed members of criminal groups often patrol areas of the state and operate with impunity particularly along the border region from Reynosa to Nuevo Laredo," reads the State Department warning. "In these areas, local law enforcement has limited capacity to respond to incidents of crime." Musicians have not been spared in the gang violence that batters much of Mexico. In 2020, 10 musicians and crew members of a regional band known as Sensación Musical were ambushed and slain in the southwestern state of Guerrero while returning from a gig. Authorities called the bloody attack the result of a dispute between rival armed groups in rural Guerrero. Special correspondent Cecilia Sánchez Vidal contributed to this report. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
6 days ago
- Los Angeles Times
5 missing band members found slain in Mexican border town; authorities blame Gulf cartel
MEXICO CITY — Among their last social media posts were photos of the five band members posing at the international bridge leading across the Rio Grande from their hometown, the Mexican border city of Reynosa. 'We'll see you in a little while in McAllen, Texas,' read the caption, which went on to express the group's hope to perform one day in the United States, following the path of many regional Mexican ensembles that have found binational success. Those images on the bridge were among the last public sightings of the members of El Fugitivo, a group of local musicians, mostly in their 20s, who worked the border circuit, playing ranchera tunes and plaintive corridos, or ballads. The five dropped out of sight after an appearance Sunday evening in Reynosa, apparently at a private residence. Their disappearance in the dangerous border town in the state of Tamaulipas — a mostly cartel-controlled area infamous for massacres and kidnappings — caused consternation among relatives and friends, who staged demonstrations this week to demand their safe return. Demonstrators staged rallies on a pair of border bridges and at other sites in Reynosa. But it was all for naught: On Thursday, Tamaulipas prosecutors confirmed that authorities had discovered the bodies of the five at an unspecified site in Reynosa. Authorities have made nine arrests in the slayings, Irving Barrios Mojica, the attorney general of Tamaulipas state, told journalists at an afternoon news conference. He blamed the slayings on Gulf cartel, which reigns supreme in the area, but gave no motive for the homicides. Nor did the prosecutor say how the five were killed or specify where the bodies were found. The five were kidnapped at 10 p.m. Sunday, the district attorney said, apparently while en route to a private engagement in Reynosa. Forensic examination of the site is continuing, the district attorney said Tamaulipas — bordering Texas and the Gulf of Mexico — is widely considered among the most dangerous states in Mexico. It has long had one of the country's highest rates of homicides and disappearances. Tamaulipas is also the site of two of the most grisly massacres in recent Mexican history — the slayings of at least 265 U.S.-bound migrants in two separate mass killings more than a decade ago in the municipality of San Fernando. Authorities blamed the Zetas gang. The U.S. State Department urges U.S. citizens to not travel to Tamaulipas, citing the threat of crime and kidnapping.'Heavily armed members of criminal groups often patrol areas of the state and operate with impunity particularly along the border region from Reynosa to Nuevo Laredo,' reads the State Department warning. ' In these areas, local law enforcement has limited capacity to respond to incidents of crime.' Musicians have not been spared in the gang violence that batters much of Mexico. In 2020, 10 musicians and crew members of a regional band known as Sensación Musical were ambushed and slain in the southwestern state of Guerrero while returning from a gig. Authorities called the bloody attack the result of a dispute between rival armed groups in rural Guerrero. Special correspondent Cecilia Sánchez Vidal contributed to this report.
