Thread: Mexico police fire on US embassy staff

24 August 2012 Last updated at 17:13 ET

Mexico police fire on US embassy staff


Analysts say attacks on diplomatic personnel are rare in Mexico

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Two people employed at the US embassy in Mexico have been wounded after their car was mistakenly fired on by police south of Mexico city, officials say.

The Mexican Navy said the US personnel were on a main road to the city of Cuernavaca when the shooting happened.

Details are still unclear, but the navy said the US vehicle had been fleeing from gunmen in another car.

The US state department said it was working with Mexican authorities to investigate the incident.

Spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the two men were receiving "appropriate medical care and are in stable condition".

"We have no further information to share at this time," she added.

One of the men was said to have been hit in the leg and the other in the stomach and hand. Both were admitted to hospital.

The Mexican public security ministry and marines said in a statement: "Today at 08:00 a diplomatic vehicle belonging to the US embassy was hit by multiple bullets from personnel of the federal police in the Tres Marias-Huitzilac highway."

It said the embassy personnel had been heading to a military installation when a carload of gunmen opened fire on them and chased them, along with a Mexican naval officer accompanying them.

Alerted to the gunfire, a federal police patrol vehicle came to the scene and apparently opened fire.

The federal police officers involved have been held for questioning, the navy said.

Pictures from the scene showed the Toyota vehicle riddled with bullet-holes.

The shooting happened in an area where drug gangs and leftist rebels have been known to operate in the past.

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I don't think these stories make a lot of sense. If the car was being chased and the police "accidentally shot at it why does it say it was "found". Did it just drive away after the police shot up and they to go look for it?

There is the heavy concentration of bullet holes on the passenger side from and "expert marksman" but this was supposed to have happened as they drove down a dirt road toward the people that opened fire on them.

There is something about this story that is not making any sense. Maybe it is not politically good for the administration to have an incident in Mexico right now.

Or, is it just me?

August 24, 2012 1:52 PM

2 US officials hurt in confusing Mexico shooting


An armored U.S. Embassy vehicle is checked by military personal after it was attacked by unknown assailants on the highway leading to the city of Cuernavaca, near Tres Marias, Mexico, Friday, Aug. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Alexandre Meneghini)





(CBS/AP)MEXICO CITY - The Mexican Navy says federal police shot at an embassy vehicle carrying two U.S. government employees after the vehicle came under attack from unidentified gunmen.


The shooting appears to have been a case of a confused gunbattle that broke out on a rural road just south of Mexico City.


The Navy said Friday the embassy personnel were heading down a dirt road to a military installation when a carload of gunmen opened fire on them and chased them, along with a Navy officer accompanying them.


Alerted to the gunfire, a federal police patrol vehicle came to the scene and apparently opened fire. The statement does not make clear whose bullets injured the U.S. workers.


A law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press both men hospitalized, one with a wound to the leg and the other hit in the stomach and hand.

State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said they are in stable condition.



The official said the wounded were not agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration or FBI, but did not identify which agency they work for.


Military guards stand in front of an armored U.S. Embassy vehicle attacked by unknown assailants on the highway leading to the city of Cuernavaca, near Tres Marias, Mexico, Friday, Aug. 24, 2012.

(Credit: AP Photo/Alexandre Meneghini)


The U.S. Embassy had no immediate comment.



A Mexican army official said the SUV with diplomatic plates was found after a report about a shootout on the two-lane highway. The army official was not authorized to be quoted by name. He said a Mexican navy captain was also in the vehicle, but was not injured.



The Toyota vehicle was riddled with bullets, most concentrated around the passenger-side window, indicating possible involvement by experienced gunmen.



The shooting occurred on road winding through a mountainous area where drug gangs, common criminals and leftist rebels have been known to be active in the past.



The scene of the shooting was cordoned off and guarded Friday by more than 100 heavily armed marines and soldiers, and the highway was closed. Investigators examined what appear to be shell casings left at the scene.




2 US officials hurt in confusing Mexico shooting - CBS News

Gunmen attack U.S. diplomatic vehicle in Mexico

By the CNN Wire Staff
updated 2:33 PM EDT, Fri August 24, 2012



STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• NEW: There are conflicting reports on the nationalities of the injured
• Unknown gunmen attacked the U.S. vehicle on a highway near Cuernavaca
• The U.S. State Department is aware of the reports, but has no immediate comment

(CNN) -- Unknown gunmen attacked an American diplomatic vehicle south of Mexico City, injuring three people, a Mexican military official told CNN Mexico.


The motive behind the attack on the U.S. vehicle, which was on a diplomatic mission, was not immediately known.


Gunmen inside what was described as a Mexican federal police vehicle fired upon a U.S. Embassy vehicle, said the official, who declined to be named for security reasons.


The Mexican official said three Mexican marines were injured in the shooting. However, there were conflicting reports. Some Mexican reports stated that two of the injured were Americans.
The injured passengers were transported to a hospital in Cuernavaca, Mexico.


The Drug Enforcement Administration confirmed that a U.S. diplomatic vehicle was "shot up" in Mexico, but said no DEA officers were involved in the incident.


The U.S. State Department said it was aware of the reports, but had no immediate comment.


The U.S. vehicle was attacked on a highway between Mexico City and Cuernavaca, near the town of Tres Marias.


Mexico's federal police said that its personnel were not involved in the shooting. Their forces appeared at the scene only after the shooting to secure the perimeter, police said.

Gunmen attack U.S. diplomatic vehicle in Mexico - CNN.com

Aug 24, 2012

Mexican gunmen, police fire on U.S. diplomatic car; 2 hurt

By Michael Winter, USA TODAY
Updated <1m ago


By Alexandre Meneghini, AP

A U.S. Embassy vehicle was attacked today south of Mexico City, and Mexican Federal Police also shot at the SUV during a confusing gunbattle, the Mexican Navy reports.Two U.S. government personnel were wounded.

Update at 5:21 p.m. ET:
At least four vehicles opened fire, the Mexican Navy says, though it hasn't clarified how many police or vehicles were involved.

Here's how AP is describing what happened, based on what's being shared at the moment:

The shootings appeared to have been the result of a confused running gunbattle that broke out on a rural road in a mountainous area that has been used by common criminals, drug gangs and leftist rebels in the past.

The Navy said the embassy personnel were heading down a dirt road to a military installation when a carload of gunmen opened fire on them and chased them, along with a Navy officer accompanying them.

The Americans' vehicle tried to escape, but three other cars joined the original vehicle in pursuing them down the road. Occupants of all four vehicles opened fire, and the Navy captain called more help. Federal police officers and Mexican army troops then showed up on the road. The statement does not make clear whose bullets injured the U.S. workers

Update at 4:43 p.m. ET: The Mexican Navy now says that federal police shot at the U.S. vehicle after it was attacked by a carload of unidentified gunmen, the Associated Press is reporting. It's not clear whether the two U.S. personnel, traveling with a Mexican Navy officer, were wounded by bullets from the gunmen or the police.

The AP writes that it "appears to have been a case of a confused gunbattle" on a dirt road leading to a military installation. The gunmen fired on and chased the SUV, which bears diplomatic license plates, before the federal police arrived and began shooting. The gunmen escaped.

The BBC reports that more than 30 shots were fired and that the police were investigating a report of a stolen vehicle in the area.

Update at 3:22 p.m. ET: The Associated Press, citing an unnamed official, said two U.S. government personnel were hospitalized. One was shot in the stomach and a hand, and the other suffered a leg wound. They were in an armored SUV when they were fired on, reportedly by occupants of a Mexican Federal Police vehicle.

Neither works for the Drug Enforcement Administration or the FBI, but the official would not identify their affiliation.

Original post by Douglas Stanglin:
Update at 2:59 p.m. ET: CNN initially reported that three Marines on a diplomatic mission were injured and taken to a hospital in Cuernavaca.
CNN later says there are conflicting reports on the persons injured. The cable news network, however, continues to report that a U.S. diplomatic car was fired upon by gunmen purportedly in a Mexican federal police vehicle.

The Mexican newspaper El Sol de Mexico reports that two DEA shooting instructors were among three people shot in an incident in the village of Fierro del Toro Huitzilac Township.

It says the Americans were traveling in a Toyota pickup with diplomatic plates.

The newspaper notes that "given the secrecy of the federal authorities," Mexican police patrolling the area may not have been aware of the occupants of the vehicle and may have fired on it if the occupants did not stop.

CNN quoted an unidentified Mexican military official earlier as saying gunmen in a purported Mexican federal police vehicle fired on a U.S. Embassy vehicle in which Marines were riding.

Adding to the confusion, a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration officials tells CNN that a U.S. diplomatic vehicle was "shot up" but that none of its officers was involved.

The Mexican military official told CNN that occupants of the U.S. Embassy vehicle were wearing civilian clothes and were on an undisclosed diplomatic mission.

Mexican gunmen, police fire on U.S. diplomatic car; 2 hurt

3 U.S. Marines shot in Mexico

Three U.S. Marines were injured in a shooting south of Mexico City on Friday morning, a Mexican military official told CNN Mexico.

The motive behind the attack on the American servicemen, who were on a diplomatic mission, was not immediately known.

Unknown gunmen inside what was described as a Mexican federal police vehicle fired upon a U.S. Embassy vehicle that carried the U.S. servicemen, said the official, who declined to be named for security reasons.

The injured Marines were transported to a hospital in Cuernavaca, Mexico.

　
3 U.S. Marines shot in Mexico – This Just In - CNN.com Blogs

Ok now I am confused...Leave it to the main stream news not to get the all details before reporting a story.
Then again maybe the story is changing as they report it from our government..another coverup?

Originally Posted by posylady

Ok now I am confused...Leave it to the main stream news not to get the all details before reporting a story.
Then again maybe the story is changing as they report it from our government..another coverup?

Posylady, there doesn't need to be a government coverup for the LSM to confuse and misreport the facts. The LSM do that very well all by themselves, thank you very much.

Now, when the LSM get the story straight, just as it happened, that's when we need to start being concerned that something is up.

Armored Vehicle Expert Speaks About Attack in Mexico



Posted: Aug 24, 2012 6:08 PM Updated: Aug 24, 2012 6:35 PM

WESLACO - The armored vehicle where two U.S. Embassy workers were shot today may have been slowed down or stopped by the attackers, an expert said.

Jason Forston, with Texas Armoring Corporation, said no armored vehicle is completely bullet-proof.

"It looks like the attackers had stopped the vehicle or they were using fully automatic weapons. There are a lot of shots in very concentrated areas," he said.

Mexican officials today confirmed that federal police fired on the diplomatic vehicle carrying the two U.S. government employees and one Mexican marine. The three were on their way to a military base in the region.

Mexican authorities said federal police said they fired on the SUV because they confused it with a vehicle they were pursuing.

The attack happened today south of Mexico City, Mexican officials said. Mexican media reported the injured Americans are Jeff Hoods Garner and Stan Dove Boss. The vehicle had 30 bullet holes.

"When you are in ambush situation you never want to stop, and this vehicle was slowed or stopped to take that much fire," Forston said.

"The gunmen knew what they were after. There's no shots on the windshield from the outside ... they were trying to kill whoever was in that front, shotgun seat, there's no doubt in my mind of that."

He said the fact that the passengers survived is a testament that the armoring served its purpose.

"No vehicle is 100 percent bullet-proof ... nothing is. There's always a bigger bullet," Forston said. "It takes so much force and impact before a bullet will go through, (and) that's what happened."

He said most armored vehicles are not designed to withstand armor-piercing bullets.

"If the bullets were steel core munitions, that could be why there was penetration," Forston said.

He said armored vehicles going into Mexico may need a higher level of protection.

Armored Vehicle Expert Speaks About Attack in Mexico | KRGV.com | CHANNEL 5 NEWS | Breaking News Breaking Stories

The reports are are STILL contradictory.
Mexico to probe shooting that left 2 US government officials injured

Published August 25, 2012
Associated Press



MEXICO CITY – Mexican authorities are trying to sort out why a U.S. Embassy vehicle was shot up by federal police on a rural back road in mountains south of the capital, leaving two U.S. government workers wounded.

Officials from both nations said the federal officers were chasing criminals Friday morning when a hail of bullets was fired at the embassy sport utility vehicle, but the accounts left many questions unanswered.

The two American workers were taken to a hospital in the nearby resort city of Cuernavaca. One had a gunshot wound in his leg and the other was wounded in the stomach and a hand, said a Mexican government official who spoke on condition of anonymity. Hospital officials in Cuernavaca said the wounded were later transferred to a hospital in Mexico City in stable condition.

The U.S. Embassy did not release the names of the injured workers, who it said were heading to a military training base south of Mexico City. Its statement said the employees and a Mexican naval captain traveling with them were fired on by a group of men, and were chased when they tried to escape. The naval officer was not seriously injured.

Mexico's federal police agency acknowledged that its own officers fired on the embassy's SUV, which appeared to be armored and has diplomatic plates. It said the officers were in the area hunting for criminals, but it did not explain what happened.

Its statement said at least four vehicles fired at the embassy vehicle on a road south of the capital, but it did not clarify whether any or all of them were federal police units. Federal police spokesmen did not respond to The Associated Press requesting further comment.

A U.S. official who was briefed on the shooting said later that all the shots were fired by federal police.

Mexican prosecutors said in a statement late Friday that 12 officers based in Mexico City were being held for questioning. Officers based in the capital have jurisdiction only in Mexico City and in four suburbs of neighboring Mexico State, not in Cuernavaca.

The embassy employees were on their way to do training or related work at a military base, the U.S. official said.
"Apparently the police were looking for some bad guys and they ran into each other," said the official, who agreed to discuss the incident only if his name was not used. "It looks like it was just a bad mistake ... they just shot and kept shooting."

The shooting broke out in an area that has been used by common criminals, drug gangs and leftist rebels in the past.
Mexican officials said the Americans' vehicle initially was fired on by a carload of gunmen who first displayed their weapons as the embassy SUV drove along a stretch of dirt road off a highway that connects Mexico City to Cuernavaca. The U.S. driver of the Toyota tried to escape, but three other vehicles joined the original one in pursuing them down the dirt road and onto the highway.

Passengers in all four vehicles fired, and the Mexican naval captain called for help, government officials said. Federal police officers and Mexican soldiers then showed up on the road.
The SUV stopped on the highway, but it wasn't clear if the driver was halted by the chasers or stopped because of the wounds.

The vehicle was riddled with bullets, most concentrated around the passenger-side window. The area was cordoned off and guarded by more than 100 heavily armed marines and soldiers, and the highway was closed for hours. Investigators examined what appeared to be shell casings.

The U.S. Embassy said it was helping Mexico's government in its investigation of the incident. It said the wounded were not agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration or the FBI, but officials for neither country identified what agency they work for.

"They are receiving appropriate medical care and are in stable condition. We have no further information to share at this time," said Victoria Nuland, a State Department spokeswoman in Washington.

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Democrat from Texas who closely follows the affairs with Mexico, said both countries appeared to be working together to find out what went wrong.
"If the Mexicans are cooperating with U.S. officials to find out exactly what happened here then I don't think this will affect the U.S.-Mexico relationship," he said.

Attacks on diplomatic personnel in Mexico were once considered rare, but this was the third shooting incident in two years.
In 2011, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent was killed and another wounded in a drug gang shooting in northern Mexico.

A drug-gang shooting in 2010 in the border city of Ciudad Juarez killed a U.S. consulate employee, her husband and another man.
While Mexico City has largely been spared the drug violence that hits other parts of the country, Cuernavaca has been the scene of drug gang turf battles involving remnants of the Beltran Leyva cartel.

Read more: Mexico to probe shooting that left 2 US government officials injured | Fox News