Reuters5 musicians who disappeared within the Mexican metropolis of Reynosa, close to the US border, had been murdered by suspected drug cartel members, Mexican authorities have stated.
9 alleged members of the infamous Gulf Cartel have been arrested on suspicion of homicide, in line with Irving Barrios Mojica, lawyer normal for the Mexican state of Tamaulipas.
The musicians – referred to as Grupo Fugitivo – had been kidnapped whereas travelling to a non-public occasion on 25 Could, Barrios Mojica stated. Quickly after, their kin reported receiving ransom calls for.
Investigators are working to ascertain a motive for the killings.
The musicians had been aged between 20 and 40, and infrequently performed at native events and dances.
9 firearms and two automobiles had been additionally seized in the course of the arrests.
Grupo Fugitivo carried out a spread of regional Mexican music, a style which incorporates corridos – songs which have traditionally been used to pay homage to drug cartels and their leaders.
It isn’t instantly clear if the group was focused due to their music, or had been caught up within the violence that has lengthy beset Tamaulipas, the place the Gulf Cartel has a powerful presence.
The Trump administration has designated the Gulf Cartel, alongside a number of different prison teams, a “international terrorist organisation”.
In January, the US embassy in Mexico issued a degree 4 journey advisory, the best degree, warning its residents to not journey to a number of Mexican cities, together with Reynosa.
It cited the chance of “crime and kidnapping” and “more and more frequent gun battles occurring in and round” the town.
“Closely armed members of prison teams usually patrol areas of the state and function with impunity notably alongside the border area from Reynosa to Nuevo Laredo,” the US state division stated.
“In these areas, native regulation enforcement has restricted capability to reply to incidents of crime.”