Matamoros, Mexico | 4 US Citizens Missing, Kidnapped in Mexico

Matamoros, Tamaulipas — 4 US citizens kidnapped rear the gunman opened fire on their car in a border city in northern Mexico Matamoros, FBI said on Sunday.

The four entered Matamoros across the street. brownsville, texas, on friday. Authorities said they were traveling in a white minivan with South Carolina license plates. Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this article stated that the license plate was from North Carolina.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said on Monday that the four Americans were going to buy drugs, resulting in a shootout between the two militants, without giving details.

“These are people from the United States, and according to the information we have, they crossed the border to buy drugs in Mexico, there were conflicts between groups, and they were detained,” Lopez Obrador said. .

a A video posted on social media on Friday shows an armed mansome in tan bulletproof vests, board four Pickup truck bed in broad daylightOne was alive and up, but the other two appeared dead or wounded.

It matches the description of what the FBI said.

The FBI’s San Antonio branch office said the vehicle opened fire shortly after it entered Mexico.

“All four Americans were put into a vehicle and taken from the scene by armed men,” the office said.The FBI offered a $50,000 reward for returning the victims and apprehending the perpetrators. offers.

Matamoros is Gulf drug cartels And the shootout at Matamoros was so bad, US Consulate issued warn of danger Local authorities warned people to evacuate on Friday.

Tamaulipas State Police said people were killed and injured on Friday, but did not disclose how many.The state police said neither the police nor the military were involved in Friday’s shootout. .

“There have been two violent incidents among unidentified civilians,” state police said on social media on Friday. “The exact death toll is still being confirmed.”

The issue of cartel violence continues to be a hot topic, especially in Texas.

In fact, on Friday, the same day that the kidnapping occurred, Republican Senator John Cornyn joined lawmakers in talking about Mexico’s fight against the cartels. They visited several towns in the Rio Grande Valley, including Brownsville.

Victims of violence in Matamoros and other large border cities of Tamaulipas often go uncounted. is producing.

A video posted on social media on Friday showed armed men loading two bodies into a truck in broad daylight.

The U.S. Department of State travel warning for Tamaulipas warns U.S. citizens to avoid traveling there. However, being a border city, US citizens living in Brownsville and elsewhere in Texas frequently cross over to visit family, attend medical appointments, and shop. It also serves as a transit point for those traveling deep into the

For years, a night out at Matamoros has also been part of the Spring Break “bilateral getaway” that flocks to Texas’ South Padre Island. But the escalating violence in the last decade to his 15 years has threatened much of that business.

The FBI said the van the victims were driving had North Carolina license plates, but officials didn’t provide other details about who they were or where they were from.