Gunfights broke out and vehicles were set ablaze in the city of 600,000 people, which lies across the Rio Grande from McAllen, Texas

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Gunfights and blockades of burning vehicles broke out Friday in the border city of Reynosa leaving at least three dead, Mexican authorities said.

The government of the border state of Tamaulipas said federal police and soldiers had “detained members of a criminal gang that operates in Reynosa”, an apparent reference to Gulf cartel members.



“Members of the same criminal group reacted (to the arrests) by attacking federal forces and carrying out blockades in the city,” the statement said.

Officials said roads in the city were blocked with vehicles set on fire by gunmen.

The state government said three armed civilians, presumably cartel gunmen, had been killed in the confrontations. Authorities said the situation was brought under control by late afternoon.

Federal police and marines had earlier captured “El Gafe”, a leader of the Gulf Cartel, said a police spokesman.



A federal government security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, identified “El Gafe” as Jose Hugo Rodriguez Sanchez.

The official had earlier named the cartel boss as Jose Tiburcio Hernandez Fuentes. Later, he clarified that Hernandez was a different suspected gang member also captured.

Earlier, Francisco Garcia Cabeza de Vaca, an opposition senator and former mayor of Reynosa, claimed the city of 600,000 people was “completely out of control”.

Reynosa has been one of the most violent cities in Mexico over the past year, wracked by turf wars among the Gulf Cartel and the Zetas, two drug gangs that have been fighting for control of border smuggling routes and crime rackets.



More than 100,000 people have died in gang-related violence in Mexico over the past eight years.



President Enrique Pena Nieto pledged to restore order when he took office in December 2012, but although the homicide count has fallen, parts of the country remain mired in violence.