Gunmen kill 9th police officer in northern Mexico

By The Associated Press
January 13, 2011 at 7:56 p.m.

MONTERREY, Mexico — Mexican authorities say a state police officer has been slain while on patrol in Monterrey, becoming the ninth officer killed in just two weeks in the northern industrial city.

Nuevo Leon state security spokesman Jorge Domene says the officer was on patrol near the Tec de Monterrey University when he was killed. He says a joint state and military task force later killed three gunmen suspected in the attack.

Four city police officers, three traffic officers and a police prison guard have also been shot dead since the beginning of the year in Monterrey.

The city is the capital of Nuevo Leon state, which has seen a spike in drug violence as drug cartels fight over smuggling routes to the United States.

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