Thread: Bullet from Mexico shootout may have struck Texas university

By the CNN Wire Staff
August 23, 2010 10:25 a.m. EDT

CNN) -- A bullet that flew through a building at the University of Texas at El Paso may have crossed the U.S.-Mexico border during a shootout between drug traffickers and Mexican federal police, authorities said.

University President Diana Natalicio said Sunday a bullet struck Bell Hall sometime Saturday evening. No injuries were reported at the building.

That same evening, a "major gun battle" between drug traffickers and Mexican authorities broke out in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, just 30 yards from the U.S. border at El Paso, Texas, a U.S. Border Patrol spokesman said.

Three police officers were injured and one armed suspect was killed, federal police spokesman Ramon Salinas said.

During the fire exchange, U.S. authorities blocked off a section of Paisano Street, which runs parallel to the Rio Grande.

Natalicio said campus police determined a bullet went through the glass panel of the building's door and lodged in an office door frame.

"This appears to be the only stray bullet to have struck the campus," Natalicio said. "There is no evidence to suggest that UTEP was specifically targeted."

Natalicio said the university will consult with law enforcement and government officials about possible further security precautions.

The shootout took place less than two months after shots fired from a gun battle originating in Juarez crossed into El Paso and hit City Hall, damaging the building.

Also at
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http://www.kfoxtv.com/news/24733281/detail.html

Statement by Gov. Rick Perry on Bullet from Juarez Striking UTEP
KFOX

Posted: 3:10 pm MDT August 23, 2010Updated: 4:54 pm MDT August 23, 2010
Gov. Rick Perry today issued the following statement regarding bullet from a gun battle in Juarez that struck a building on the campus of the University of Texas-El Paso over the weekend:

“For the second time in two months, bullets from a gun battle in the escalating drug war in Juarez have struck a building in El Paso, and I’d like to commend the swift action taken by local and state law enforcement in the area. By the grace of God, the stray bullets from these incidents have yet to injure or kill a Texan. It is unconscionable that the Obama Administration is gambling with American lives, betting that escalating violence from these cartels won't eventually shed the blood of innocent people on U.S. soil.

“We must ensure El Paso and other border communities remain a safe place for people to live, work and raise a family. It’s time for Washington to stop the rhetoric and immediately deploy a significance force of personnel and resources to the border to protect our homeland.â€