Mexican Drug Cartel Reportedly Claims Responsibility—And Apologizes—For Abducting And Murdering Americans

Topline

Members of a Mexican drug cartel purportedly penned a letter apologizing for kidnapping four Americans and killing two of them last week, and claimed that the individuals responsible for the violent attack had been turned over to Mexican authorities, according to the Associated Press, after the international incident drew the ire of the U.S. law enforcement community, which promised to go after the leaders of any cartels found responsible.

Key Facts

Surprising Fact

The cartel may have released Thursday’s letter in an attempt to ease tensions after last week’s attack, which brought army special forces and National Guard troops to Matamoros, attracting unwanted attention that may interfere with cartels’ business, Mexican security analyst David Saucedo told AP. Kidnappings are jarringly common in Mexican border cities, and migrants are frequently victims, but American citizens usually aren’t deliberately targeted because cartels are wary of drawing the U.S. government’s attention, experts say.

Tangent

The Gulf Cartel, which is based in Matamoros, has controlled the area for much of the 2000s. The group has historically focused on distributing cocaine, marijuana, heroin and methamphetamine across the Texas border between the Rio Grande Valley and South Padre Island, according to a 2019 Congressional Research Service report. Amid internal fighting, the Gulf Cartel has in recent years split into factions, allowing groups like the Scorpions to compete for territory and prompting an uptick in violence in the state of Tamaulipas, where Matamoros is located.

Key Background

Following a days-long search, Mexican officials found the four Americans in a “wooden house” near Matamoros Tuesday morning, four days after they were kidnapped. Shaeed Woodard and Zindell Brown have been identified by multiple news outlets as the American individuals killed during the attack, but officials have not confirmed their identities, and the two survivors are Eric Williams (who was shot in the legs) and LaTavia Washington McGee (who was uninjured), their family members told reporters. The group traveled from the Carolinas to Matamoros last week for one of the individuals to receive a cosmetic tummy tuck, according to an AP report. Just after the group crossed the border from Brownsville, Texas, into Matamoros they got caught in a cartel shootout, with an unidentified gunman firing at the Americans and then taking them to another vehicle that fled the scene, the FBI said. In the time the group was missing, they were reportedly taken to multiple locations including a medical clinic “to create confusion and avoid rescue efforts,” Tamaulipas Gov. Américo Villarrea said. While officials are still investigating the motive, mistaken identity is likely to blame for the attack and kidnapping, according to Irving Barrios, the attorney general for Tamaulipas. On Tuesday, authorities arrested Jose “N,” a 24-year-old who was watching the victims when officials found them, but since then they have not said publicly if more arrests have been made in the case. Attorney General Merrick Garland said the Justice Department will be “relentless” in its pursuit of justice and do everything it can to “hold accountable the individuals responsible for this attack.”

Further Reading

2 Of the Kidnapped Americans In Mexico Are At A U.S. Hospital—Here’s What Else We Know (Forbes)

Two Americans Dead And Two Other Found Alive After Violent Kidnapping In Mexico (Forbes)