Exclusive Photos: Gun Battle Mexican State Government Tried to Downplay

Authorities in Tamaulipas tried to downplay a deadly cartel attack on Mexican military forces just south of the Texas border. While the violence in Tamaulipas continues to climb higher each day, government officials continue to downplay the violence, call it fake news, and claim that the border state is safe.

As Breitbart Texas initially reported, last week Mexican soldiers were patrolling in the southern part of Miguel Aleman, a border city just south of Roma, Texas. The soldiers were driving in a convoy near the Buenos Aires neighborhood on the south side of the city when a group of Gulf Cartel gunmen began shooting at them from a brushy area on the west of their location.

The soldiers fought off the attack, called for backup and air support, and killed 12 gunmen — ten men and two women — who all wore tactical gear and carried weapons. Tamaulipas state and Mexican federal officials tried to suppress any photographs or videos of the shootout.

Despite the efforts, Breitbart Texas obtained various leaked and memos from Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office that documented the investigation into the shooting and the description of the gunmen.

In the aftermath of the shootout, the military vehicles, which were not armored, sustained damage from multiple high-caliber gun shots. Breitbart Texas also obtained leaked photographs of the vehicles that government officials tried to keep private.

In the aftermath, the Tamaulipas government issued a short statement confirming the death of the 12 gunmen. Still, it refused to provide details of the confrontation and did not mention the cartel they belonged to. As Breitbart Texas reported, under the leadership of security spokesman Jorge Cuellar Montoya, the Tamaulipas government has been leading a propaganda effort to claim that the state is safe and suppress any negative news about the worsening security conditions.

Pundits and politicians from political parties other than Mexico’s ruling party claimed that the Morena Party’s government, including Tamaulipas, turned over the state to drug cartels in exchange for political contributions and power.

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.