The U.S. Consulate in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, has issued a warning that U.S. citizens, residents and individuals with ties to the U.S. are being targeted for kidnapping for ransom while traveling by bus.
On Friday afternoon, the consulate Security Alert He specifically pointed to incidents that occurred around the border city of Reynosa in Tamaulipas state, and claimed that the kidnappings were concentrated on intercity buses departing from Reynosa.
“These kidnappings appear to be particularly targeted at passengers with ties to the United States, such as U.S. citizens or residents,” the security alert said. “Kidnappers typically demand ransoms of several thousand dollars per victim.”
The incident follows a trend reported by Breitbart Texas in January, in which the Gulf Cartel targeted buses leaving the Reynosa Bus Terminal. At the time, they were kidnapping migrants. In one incident, armed men kidnapped a bus carrying more than 30 migrants and demanded a ransom. It wasn’t until the incident garnered national attention that the Gulf Cartel released the migrants it had kidnapped, even though Mexican authorities initially claimed to have rescued them through the operation.
The kidnappings appear to be linked to the commercial bus route between Reynosa and Matamoros, where the majority of the kidnappings occur. The two cities are currently controlled by rival factions of the Gulf Cartel, which have been engaged in a fierce turf war over lucrative drug and human trafficking routes for over a year. Despite repeated false claims by the Tamaulipas government about improving security, the Gulf Cartel has been able to carry out its turf wars and many other high-profile crimes with total impunity throughout Tamaulipas.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist at Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. twitter and FacebookContact details: email address.
Brandon Darby is Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and other senior Breitbart executives. twitter and FacebookContact details: email address.
