Thread: 3,725 Killed In Mexico Drug Wars This Year

Oct 23, 5:37 PM EDT

21 die in Mexico violence, 4 in crowded park

By MARINA MONTEMAYOR
Associated Press Writer

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (AP) -- Four men were shot dead in front of a crowd at an amusement park, a toddler died after the car he was traveling in crashed during a gunbattle, and a businessman was killed after leading a protest against violence, officials said Thursday.

All together, 21 people died during 24 hours across Mexico, which is waging a fierce battle against drug traffickers and other criminal gangs.

In Ciudad Juarez, across the border from El Paso, Texas, the four men were shot inside a go-cart rental at the Xtreme amusement park Wednesday night, said Alejandro Pariente, a spokesman for the local prosecutor's office. The park had been filled with teenagers, bicycling through obstacle courses, skating and rappelling.

Police had no suspects and had not disclosed possible motives for the shootings.

Elsewhere in the city, a used car salesman was shot to death while driving down a main boulevard hours after leading hundreds of other business owners in a protest against kidnappings and extortion, Pariente said.

The protesters had gathered at the Treasury Department's local offices, threatening to close their businesses or stop paying taxes if they did not receive police protection. One protester, who refused to give his name because he feared for his safety, said hundreds of business owners have been targeted by extortioners who demand up to US$500 a week for "protection" against crime. Others have been kidnapped for ransom.

In Tijuana, a 1-year-old boy was killed when the car he was riding in crashed as the driver tried to flee a gunbattle late Wednesday between police and three armed men, officials in the state prosecutor's office said. The toddler, who had been sitting in his mother's lap, died from the impact of the crash.

Two men were taken into custody after the shooting, and one officer was wounded.

Two other people were found dead early Thursday in Tijuana, across the border from San Diego, California, including a badly burned corpse left in a trash bin.

Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez have both seen nearly daily killings as Mexico is swept up in a wave of drug-related bloodshed. Officials blame the violence on cartels fighting over lucrative smuggling routes.

Elsewhere in northern Mexico, 10 gunmen were killed in running battles with state police in the city of Nogales, across the border from Nogales, Arizona, according to a police statement.

The fighting started when assailants in a car opened fire on police searching another vehicle. The police fired back, killing one of the armed men and injuring another.

The rest of the gunmen fled in both cars, at one point hurling grenades at the police pursuing them. One of the fleeing cars crashed into a wall, killing three gunmen. Three gunmen in the other car were killed in a subsequent shootout with the police, and others died at local hospitals.

Outside the northeastern city of Monterrey, meanwhile, a soldier, the director of a security firm and third man were found stabbed to death alongside a highway Wednesday, officials from the prosecutor's office said. At least 10 soldiers have been found dead in Nuevo Leon state, where Monterrey is located, in the past two weeks

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Cops ask for better weapons, more help

Violence continues unabated in Baja

By Sandra Dibble
STAFF WRITER

October 25, 2008

ROSARITO BEACH – A day after eight people were shot to death in Rosarito Beach, dozens of municipal police officers yesterday demanded better weapons and reinforcements from other agencies, saying they felt powerless against criminal groups operating in their city of 120,000 residents.



AdvertisementIn Tijuana, the violence continued as gunmen ambushed a man, woman and child inside a vehicle on a busy highway shortly after 2 p.m. The man and woman died, and the 18-month-old girl was severely injured, the Baja California Attorney General's Office said. A 20-month-old boy was killed in a traffic accident Wednesday when his panicked father crashed after being caught in a shootout.
In Rosarito Beach, a convoy of Mexican marines and a group of heavily armed federal police could be seen driving through downtown yesterday afternoon. Mayor Hugo Torres said he had been promised help from the military and state police to help gain control over crime in the city.

But from police headquarters to local schools, the fear was palpable following Thursday's three shooting incidents in less than five hours.

The victims included a 15-year-old student, one of four killed in an attack on a veterinary supply store on Bulevar Benito Juarez, the city's main avenue. Earlier, two municipal police officers were shot to death, bringing to seven the number of officers killed in the past month.

Rumors of further attacks caused some students to stay away from school, with unusually high absentee rates at two dozen of the city's schools, said Oscar Vega, Baja California's education secretary.

“We're living through a difficult period, as citizens, and we must pay attention,â€