Eighteen people died in shootings across Reynosa on Saturday night, including one on the Mexican side of the Pharr International Bridge, according to situational reports from the state of Tamaulipas.
Fourteen of those who died are considered to be victims of homicides, while four others are believed to be gunmen who boarded vehicles and drove to neighborhoods on the eastern side of the city. Those neighborhoods — Almaguer, Lampacitos, Unidad Obrera and Bienestar — are close to the Pharr international bridge.
The area is near Matamoros where a rival faction of the Gulf Cartel operates.
State police began investigating the neighborhood shootings, and eventually engaged in several confrontations with the armed civilians, four of which died.
State police rescued two women who were alive, but stuffed inside the trunk of a car. The driver was arrested. Three pickup trucks and a long weapon were also seized.
Tamaulipas Governor Francisco Garcia Cabeza de Vaca shared his condolences Sunday afternoon.
“In relation to the condemnable events in Reynosa, which took the lives of innocent citizens,” the governor wrote via a news release, “I issued instructions to clarify what happened as soon as possible and to proceed against those responsible.”
He said an investigation is underway.
“I express my solidarity to the families of the innocent victims who died as a result of these actions of organized crime in Reynosa. My government will give them the necessary support in these difficult times,” the statement read.
The governor, whose political party has been at odds against that of the Mexican president, called on the federal government to assume “its responsibility in the fight against those who threaten the security, health and stability of all communities.”
