saturn7
Politics is an EXCHANGE!!!
2 Americans kidnapped in Mexico found dead and 2 found alive, officials say
Two of the four Americans kidnapped by armed gunmen in the Mexico border city of Matamoros on Friday were found dead and two were found alive on Tuesday, US and Mexican officials said.
Shaeed Woodard and Zindell Brown were found dead, a US official familiar with the ongoing investigation told CNN. Their bodies will be examined by Mexican authorities prior to their remains being turned over to the US government, the official said.
Latavia Washington McGee, a mother of six, and Eric Williams survived the ordeal, according to the official. They were taken to a Texas hospital for treatment and observation. A Mexican government official said Washington McGee was found uninjured and Williams suffered a bullet wound to the leg.
The official indicated their families have been notified.
One person has been detained in connection to the incident, Tamaulipas Governor Américo Villarreal said, but officials would not confirm whether the person is related to a criminal organization.
The victims were found in a “wooden house” in Matamoros and had been transferred to various places over the days “in order to create confusion and avoid rescue efforts,” Villarreal said.
The discovery of the Americans’ whereabouts comes days after the four were abducted at gunpoint in Matamoros in what is believed to be a case of mistaken identity.
The tight-knit group of friends traveled from South Carolina to Mexico so Washington McGee could undergo a medical procedure across the border Friday, but they never made it to the appointment, two family members told CNN.
The group crossed into Matamoros in the state of Tamaulipas, at about 9:18 a.m. Friday, Villareal said, but they got lost while trying to locate the medical clinic, according to Washington McGee’s close friend, who did not want to be identified. They reached out to the doctor’s office for directions on Friday but were struggling to communicate with the office because they had a poor cellphone signal.
After crossing the border, they were fired upon by unidentified gunmen, “placed in a vehicle and taken from the scene by armed men,” according to the FBI.
Investigators believe the Americans were targeted by a Mexican cartel that likely mistook them for Haitian drug smugglers, the US official said. The US citizens have no concerning criminal history that has been identified by investigators, the official said.
Their abduction highlights the ongoing violence that has plagued some Mexican cities during the long-running Mexican drug war as well as the growing business of “medical tourism.”
Matamoros has a population of more than 500,000 people and is located just across the Rio Grande from Brownsville, Texas. The US State Department has issued a “Level 4: Do Not Travel” advisory for US citizens thinking of going to Tamaulipas, citing crime and kidnapping.
An innocent Mexican bystander was also killed in the encounter, US Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar said. The woman was hit by a stray bullet almost a block and a half from where the Americans were taken, Tamaulipas Gov. Américo Villarreal said on Tuesday.
Two of the four Americans kidnapped by armed gunmen in the Mexico border city of Matamoros on Friday were found dead and two were found alive on Tuesday, US and Mexican officials said.
Shaeed Woodard and Zindell Brown were found dead, a US official familiar with the ongoing investigation told CNN. Their bodies will be examined by Mexican authorities prior to their remains being turned over to the US government, the official said.
Latavia Washington McGee, a mother of six, and Eric Williams survived the ordeal, according to the official. They were taken to a Texas hospital for treatment and observation. A Mexican government official said Washington McGee was found uninjured and Williams suffered a bullet wound to the leg.
The official indicated their families have been notified.
One person has been detained in connection to the incident, Tamaulipas Governor Américo Villarreal said, but officials would not confirm whether the person is related to a criminal organization.
The victims were found in a “wooden house” in Matamoros and had been transferred to various places over the days “in order to create confusion and avoid rescue efforts,” Villarreal said.
The discovery of the Americans’ whereabouts comes days after the four were abducted at gunpoint in Matamoros in what is believed to be a case of mistaken identity.
The tight-knit group of friends traveled from South Carolina to Mexico so Washington McGee could undergo a medical procedure across the border Friday, but they never made it to the appointment, two family members told CNN.
The group crossed into Matamoros in the state of Tamaulipas, at about 9:18 a.m. Friday, Villareal said, but they got lost while trying to locate the medical clinic, according to Washington McGee’s close friend, who did not want to be identified. They reached out to the doctor’s office for directions on Friday but were struggling to communicate with the office because they had a poor cellphone signal.
After crossing the border, they were fired upon by unidentified gunmen, “placed in a vehicle and taken from the scene by armed men,” according to the FBI.
Investigators believe the Americans were targeted by a Mexican cartel that likely mistook them for Haitian drug smugglers, the US official said. The US citizens have no concerning criminal history that has been identified by investigators, the official said.
Their abduction highlights the ongoing violence that has plagued some Mexican cities during the long-running Mexican drug war as well as the growing business of “medical tourism.”
Matamoros has a population of more than 500,000 people and is located just across the Rio Grande from Brownsville, Texas. The US State Department has issued a “Level 4: Do Not Travel” advisory for US citizens thinking of going to Tamaulipas, citing crime and kidnapping.
An innocent Mexican bystander was also killed in the encounter, US Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar said. The woman was hit by a stray bullet almost a block and a half from where the Americans were taken, Tamaulipas Gov. Américo Villarreal said on Tuesday.
