While the governor in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas claims his state is safe, large-scale shootouts involving cartel paramilitary forces and Mexican authorities continue to spread terror among locals. Due to the intensity of one of those shootouts in the border city of Nuevo Laredo, the city’s mayor was forced to send out social media warnings asking the public to shelter in place. Surprisingly, the U.S. Consulate in Nuevo Laredo, which had been diligent in issuing warnings of shootouts in the city, remained silent during the clashes.
The large-scale gunbattle took place on Thursday afternoon in Nuevo Laredo when gunmen from the Cartel Del Noreste faction of Los Zetas clashed with the Mexican Army.
En Nuevo Laredo están muy buenos los abrazos desde hace media hora en diferentes partes de la ciudad. Se recomienda circular con precaución #TwisterPolitico pic.twitter.com/TbaBXtecF8
— Madre_Ada (@MarthaS01541884) May 18, 2023
The shootouts quickly spread to various parts of the city as CDN-Zetas gunmen who go by the name Tropa Del Infierno or Hell’s Troops deployed convoys of gunmen in armored vehicles while carrying heavy firepower to clash with the Mexican soldiers.
Se enciende #NuevoLaredo
Reportan balaceras y narcobloqueos derivados de una persecución a sicarios del #CDN. Hay negocios afectados por disparos de grueso calibre. @vigilantehuaste @FuriaNegra77 @DemonioTtv @lopezdoriga pic.twitter.com/eaXFO9CKfH
— Tamaulipas Código Rojo (@TamCodigoRojo) May 18, 2023
Locals used cell phones to capture the intensity of the shootouts and shared them on social media.
Impresionante lo que se vive en Tamaulipas
Si no es #Reynosa es #Matamoros o nos vamos a #Mante o nos regresamos a #SanFernando o en #CdVictoria y hoy a #NuevoLaredo. Así tiene todo el año el estado de #Tamaulipas donde quienes gobiernan son los NARCOS. Y donde están los… pic.twitter.com/6yp8d9uVZB
— Tamaulipas Código Rojo (@TamCodigoRojo) May 19, 2023
Law enforcement sources revealed to Breitbart Texas that during the shootouts, the Mexican military managed to kill four gunmen and injure a fifth. Additionally, during the clashes two innocent bystanders were struck by shrapnel from the gunfire.
The large-scale violence in Nuevo Laredo and other cities like Reynosa, San Fernando, Rio Bravo, and Matamoros comes at a time when Tamaulipas Governor Americo Villarreal has falsely claimed numerous times that his state is safe and most recently stated that it was one of the top ten states in public safety.
La transformación de #Tamaulipas avanza dando resultados positivos en #Seguridad para todas y todos los tamaulipecos. pic.twitter.com/Dzif4G8Ggu
— Américo Villarreal (@Dr_AVillarreal) May 18, 2023
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.