Deputies investigate kidnapping of former Mexican officer
March 24, 2008 - 1:50PM

The Monitor

ALTON - Sheriff's deputies continue to search for a former Mexican police officer and suspected gang member kidnapped west of the city late Friday night.


Investigators believe five men broke into the home about 10 p.m., abducted Jose Valencia Garcia, 27, and stabbed a teenager several times in the head.

The injured teen - Andres Garcia, 14 - survived the attack and is expected to recover, sheriff's deputies said Monday. It is not clear if the two Garcias are related.

Jose Valencia Garcia formerly worked as a judicial police officer in Mexico and previously served a two year prison sentence in Texas for felony drunken driving. He halso has prior felony convictions for possession of marijuana and is a suspected member of the Mexican criminal gang the Partidos Revolucinarios Mexicanos.

The kidnapping suspects fled the scene with Garcia in a tan or gold Mercury Marquis or Ford Crown Victoria with possible Texas license plactes starting with "031."

Investigators have no physical description of the kidnapping suspects other than they were Hispanic, the sheriff's office said.

Authorities urge anyone with information on this case to contact the Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office at (956) 668-TIPS.
http://tinyurl.com/35dndm