One Mexican National Guard soldier died and three others required emergency treatment after ingesting fentanyl over the holidays. Authorities tried to keep the incident secret. But the issue points to widespread corruption within Mexico’s security forces.
The incident occurred earlier this week in the city of Soto La Marina in Tamaulipas state, where a group of National Guard members had gathered for a holiday drinking session. The guards had gathered at the apartment of fellow guard Christopher Campos, 27, according to a police report from the Tamaulipas State Police obtained by Breitbart Texas.
During the party, Campos pulled out a bag containing a white powder and told everyone it was fentanyl. Campos and three other guards (31-year-old Alejandro Lores Garcia, Jorge Alberto de la Cruz Hernández, and 23-year-old Emmanuel Axel Arevalo) all tried the drug and almost immediately collapsed. A fifth security guard, Franco Pier Luigi (Machin) Aguilar López, claimed he was not using drugs, called 911 and went to a local hospital. After Axel Arevalo died of drug ingestion at the hospital, state investigators questioned Aguilar López and opened a manslaughter investigation into the incident.
In the aftermath of the incident, the state government of Tamaulipas confirmed the ongoing matter and insisted that federal authorities would conduct further investigation.
The issue comes at a time when Mexico’s controversial National Guard and various other security agencies have been plagued by allegations of corruption and an apparent refusal to fight drug cartels. Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador claimed when he took office that the National Guard could solve most of Mexico’s security problems, but the National Guard has failed to do so since replacing the country’s federal police. There wasn’t.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist at Breitbart Texas. He co-founded the Breitbart, Texas Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and Breitbart’s senior management team.you can follow him twitter And even more Facebook. He can be contacted at: iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded the Breitbart Texas Cartel His Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and Breitbart’s senior management team.please follow him twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at: bdarby@breitbart.com.
