A Mexican cartel allegedly kidnapped innocent Americans by mistake after the victims traveled to the border city of Matamoros for medical purposes.
The incident was brought to light by an unidentified United States official who said on Monday that the Americans were not the cartel's intended targets. Photographs showed that the group's white minivan collided with another vehicle before they were spirited away from the scene at gunpoint by armed individuals.
Americans Mistakenly Kidnapped
The images also showed a female seated next to three bodies outside the van. Officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have requested help from the public in searching for the whereabouts of the victims, offering a $50,000 reward for their return and the arrest of the people responsible for their kidnapping.
Currently, Tamaulipas, where Matamoros is found, is under a "Level 4: Do Not Travel" advisory from the US State Department. Authorities said that there had been an uptick in crime in the region since the Mexican government started its war on the nation's powerful drug cartels in 2006, as per the Daily Beast.
Investigators said the Mexican cartel may have mistaken the four Americans for Haitian drug smugglers crossing the border. The victims were found to have no concerning criminal history on their records.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador offered a similar explanation to the public in a statement. He noted that the information they currently have is that the Americans were trying to buy medicines in Mexico but were confronted and detained by unknown groups.
The kidnapping underscores the violence seen in some Mexican cities, which have suffered from organized crime since the Mexican Drug War began. Furthermore, the growing business of what is known as "medical tourism" is partly to blame.
The victims, who were not identified, traveled to Matamoros on Friday using their white minivan with North Carolina plates, said the FBI. Upon arriving in the city, they were fired upon and were swiftly taken away by the suspects, according to CNN.
Locating the Missing Victims
In a statement, US Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar said an innocent Mexican citizen was fatally shot during the encounter. He noted that their highest priority right now is the safety of their citizens, which is the most fundamental role of the American government.
Salazar noted that various US law enforcement agencies were working with Mexican officials at all levels of government in an attempt to bring back the victims safely. Mexican officials in Tamaulipas said federal and local resources were activated to help locate the missing Americans.
During a news conference, Tamaulipas Attorney General Irving Barrios Mojica said they quickly established communication between state and federal authorities following the kidnapping. Authorities added that an investigation was conducted immediately, and officials were processing vehicles, obtaining ballistics and fingerprint data, taking biological samples, and gathering surveillance camera footage.
Obrador said on Monday that he had already contacted the Matamoros governor and expressed optimism about locating and returning the four Americans to their families, according to Fox News.
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