There are 12 Tamaulipas state police officers in custody due to their involvement and responsibility of homicide, abuse of authority and falsifying information. They were involved in the killing of 19 people last month. One of the two vehicles involved in the killings was a pickup truck where bodies were found, had been hit with 113 bullets and was found with 3 rifles with ammunition inside. Of the 19 bodies found-16 were male, one was female and two were burned so badly they were unable to be identified. Two of the bodies were identified as Mexican and the rest were immigrants from Guatemala. The other vehicle on the scene was a Toyota Sequoia which is suspected to be from Nuevo Leon. The same sequoia was confiscated on December 6th by authorities. It was confiscated in connection to a house that had been raided where 66 foriegn migrants were being held captive. “We know about that vehicle and that the National Immigration Institute may have confiscated it,” Interior Minister Olga Sánchez Cordero said.
This entire situation is disgusting, unsettling, and disturbing. The people of Mexico and other Central American countries shouldn’t have to worry about police officers killing them, and burning their cars on scene. The police force in any country should be there to protect and serve the people. Police officers also shouldn’t be so susceptible to bribes from people.
From a regional standpoint a story like this makes other things more clear to me. Undocumented immigration into the United States has been a popular issue for politicians to discuss and most Americans brush it off because they don’t feel it pertains to them. However it makes a lot of sense because countries like Mexico, Honduras, El salvador etc. are littered with cartels which pose danger to everyone in the area. However police officers are involved in the homicide of 19 people, and the burning of their vehicles is horrifying. Powerful countries like the United States need to help Mexico improve their police force and take care of cartels. If people from Mexico felt safe, they would be less likely to illegally come into the United States which could solve a lot of economic issues for both countries.