Reynosa: Gun Battles, Riots Erupt In Mexico Over Arrest Of Drug Cartel Leader ‘El Gafe’ [Video]

In the Mexican city of Reynosa, gun battles and riots started after a Mexican drug cartel leader known as “El Gafe” was arrested. Multiple people were killed during the gun battles, and burning vehicles were used as part of a blockade near a bridge.

In a related report by the Inquisitr, a lynch mob in Tehuacan, Mexico, hung multiple robbers from a tree, including a pregnant woman and a teenager. A different pregnant woman was murdered in Mexico, and her baby cut from the the womb because the killer wanted a baby of her own.

The United States consulate located in the city of Matamoros issued a message saying it “has learned of several firefights and roadblocks throughout the city” of Reynosa. It urged Americans to “use extreme caution and to remain in-doors.”

“The city is completely out of control,” said Francisco Garcia Cabeza de Vaca, former mayor of Reynosa.

A spokesman for the Mexican town said Reynosa’s gun battles on the U.S. border began when Jose Hugo Rodriguez Sanchez, or El Gafe (The Jinxed One), the leader of the Gulf Cartel, was arrested and taken to the capital, Mexico City, by federal authorities. In response, the Mexican drug cartels started setting vehicles on fire and gun battles began near a bus station that is about three minutes south of Hidalgo International Bridge. Reports from KRGV also say vehicles were set up as a blockade and possible carjackings occurred.

Witnesses of Reynosa’s gun battles recorded the chaos from multiple angles, showing the smoke pouring into the air from the burning vehicles. It is believed three of assailants involved in Reynosa’s gun battles were killed, in addition to the death of two bystanders. Multiple state police were also injured in the shootings.

Reynosa’s gun battles mirror the turf wars over the last year between two rival Mexican drug gangs, the Gulf Cartel and the Zetas. The Gulf Cartel has been struggling to keep control of the city of 610,000 people because it is located just across the border from the United States town of McAllen, Texas. Due to easier access to the Mexican border, the two drug cartels have been fighting for control of the border smuggling routes and crime rackets. Overall, over the last eight years, more than 100,000 people have died due to the turf wars between the Mexican drug cartels.

[Image via Animal Politico]