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Monday, October 18, 2021

Matamoros Shooting Update: New Photos, New Video, & More

"HEARST" for Borderland Beat 


As recently covered by Guerrero in this previous post, a major shootout between cartel members occurred in the streets of Matamoros, in the state of Tamaulipas, on October 17, 2021. 


The latest reports write that 4 cartel members have been killed, 4 cartel members arrested, and 2 police officers were wounded during the series of event yesterday.


Warning: Graphic photos below this point. 

New Photos

Now that the dust has begun to settle further details have emerged about the exact sequence of events. The Secretary of Public Security for the state of Tamaulipas told the press that at 7:30 am local time State Police officers were on routine surveillance patrols when they surprised armed cartel members who were in the process of stealing a trailer in the 20 de Noviembre neighborhood of Matamoros. 



In response to being spotted in the act, the cartel members reportedly open fire on the officers. The State Police officers reportedly repelled their attack and a vehicle chase through the city. In this first confrontation and chase, two state officers were reportedly injured and they were transported to nearby hospitals. 



After the officers radio-ed in the attack they had just encountered, soldiers from the Army (SEDENA), National Guard and agents from the State Attorney General's Office (FGE) responded to the request for backup and joined in searching the city for the attackers. The search and chase operations were captured in various videos in different parts of the city, as seen in Guerrero’s post



Shortly after the first confrontation, a second confrontation occurred between some cartel members traveling in multiple vehicles and SEDENA soldiers in a street market in the southern section of Matamoros. This second confrontation affected hundreds of people within the street market who tried to flee or take shelter from the nearby gunfire. 



Four cartel members were killed by SEDENA soldiers according to reports in this second confrontation. New photos that appeared online presumably show these men as between three to four cartel members can be seen in the back seat of a vehicle. 



One of the men appears to be wearing handcuffs, suggesting he may have been arrested while injured and succumbed to his injuries following his arrest. However reports are unclear in these specifics. Four surviving cartel members were arrested during this second confrontation.





New Videos

At least five cartel hitmen managed to flee during either the first or second confrontation. A new video, seen below, allegedly depicts the point at which these men run into civilians.



In the video, a civilian man can be seen trying to duck down from the nearby gunfire behind a parked blue sedan vehicle. One of the hitmen who is wearing a red hat quickly motions the barrel of his gun towards the man, evidently making it clear the civilian needed to hand over his keys to his vehicle which the civilian promptly and immediately does, tossing them to the ground in front of him. 


The man in the red cap reaches down to grab the keys while the civilian stands taller with his hands raised as more gunmen approach, making clear he has surrendered. The man in the red cap is having no luck opening the blue sedan’s doors with the keys he just received so the civilian seems to indicate that his keys are for the black vehicle behind the blue sedan. 


Some sort of secondary set of keys on a lanyard is tossed back and forth between the civilian and the hitmen who are starting to pile into the black car. The hitmen eventually drive away just as a woman comes out to check on the civilian man, who wraps her in a hug and pulls her back inside the house for safety. 


Later both watch as the vehicle reverses back from the direction they came from. Then evidently some cartel members approach the man and woman again, and the two indicate that they now have the keys to the blue car ready to hand over if the hitmen are needing another car. 





Escorpiones, Ciclones and Espartanos: What's the Difference? 


It is important to mention that the Gulf Cartel (Cartel del Golfo, CDG) is not a single, monolithic entity, but a cartel that is seemingly divided (and often categorized by researchers of the organization) by the region that each CDG faction maintains as their stronghold. 


So people will often describe the “Gulf Cartel Matamoros faction”, “Reynosa faction” or “Río Bravo faction”, as just a few examples of many. These titles refer to the major Tamaulipas cities that each entity holds as their main base of operations. In the case of the shooting yesterday, it is believed to have involved the CDG Matamoros faction, which is primarily made up of the CDG group which calls itself “Los Ciclones”.  


So who are these “Escorpiones” being mentioned so often in relation to the shooting in Matamoros yesterday then? 


The “Escorpiones” term originates from back in the days of Antonio Ezequiel Cárdenas Guillén, alias “Tony Tormenta”, in which his elite personal guard began calling themselves “Escorpiones” during the tense fallout that occurred between him and his brother Osiel Cárdenas Guillén. However, it is believed that after Tony’s 2010 death, the group Escorpiones ceased to exist. 



However Escorpiones actually re-emerged with a new life, in both CDG Matamoros and CDG Tampico, calling themselves “Grupo Escorpiones” in the year 2015. Of note, CDG Tampico has a long history of working closely with the CDG Matamoros faction so this kind of lockstep development of new groups is not unusual when you consider their history. 


Frustratingly, cartel analysts cannot seem to agree on the relationship between Los Ciclones and the modern version of Escorpiones. What is known is that Ciclones and Escorpiones work so closely together that they can essentially be thought of as one entity, with analysts simply debating smaller distinctions such as if Escorpiones are the armed wing of Los Ciclones or if Escorpions is merely a temporary rebranding of Ciclones. 


Borderland Beat writer MX has said it's best to think of Escorpiones as a largely outdated term, as it only further muddies a very important recent divide within the group: the birth of an opposing force within CDG Matamoros called Los Espartanos. 


Los Espartanos are a group that developed under the leadership of Evaristo Cruz Sánchez, alias “El Vaquero” and José Alfredo Cárdenas Martínez, alias “El Contador”.  Espartanos are best defined by their opposition to the continued domination of the Cárdenas family within the upper echelons of the Gulf Cartel structure, whereas Los Ciclones could be thought of as Cárdenas family loyalists. 



Further complicating this is the fact that El Contador himself is a Cárdenas family member, however he has allegedly felt ousted by other members of his family due to his time spent in prison hence his opposition to the overall Cárdenas family dominance. 


Members of Espartanos are often former Ciclones members, which often leads to some degree of confusion as famous Espartano leaders such as El Vaquero are sometimes described in mainstream news sources as members of Los Ciclones (or even less helpful, they are described as “Escorpiones”). 


Leaders within both Ciclones and Espartanos may still be primarily referred to by an old alias such as “Escorpiones 24” or “Ciclone 3” regardless of which subgroup they currently fall under.  



Los Espartanos have taken a series of recent hits with El Vaquero being arrested in April 2021 and La Droga, who was thought to be the successor to Vaquero’s leadership within Espartanos then being arrested in August 2021





What's been going on recently with the CDG Matamoros faction?

For a brief, high level overview of the recent history, the CDG Reynosa faction and the CDG Matamoros faction (both Ciclones and Espartanos) have maintained a pact of non-aggression in recent years since there were more pressing threats to their control such as their cartel rivals: the Northeast Cartel (Cartel Del Noroeste, CDN) and Old School Zetas (Zetas Vieja Escuela, ZVE).


When people speak about the CDG Reynosa faction they often mean Los Metros, a CDG subgroup who is best  known today for their alliance with Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generation (CJNG). However it is worth mentioning that Ciclones and CDN are both thought to have some degree of presence in the municipality of Reynosa. 



However, this pact of non-aggression between CDG Matamoros and Los Metros seemingly disintegrated on June 19, 2021, when a group of cartel members shot 15 people dead in Reynosa. The prevailing rumors at the time was that CDG Rio Bravo and CDG Matamoros were behind the attack which drew widespread attention and law enforcement focus down on cartel activity in Reynosa. 


It was believed that CDG Matamoros had chosen to violate their non-aggression pact with Los Metros because they had decided they wanted to end the reign of the two foremost Metros leaders, Miguel Ángel Álvarez Campos, alias “El Miguelito” in the city of Reynosa itself (according to a June 2021 Milenio articleand César Morfín Morfín, alias “El Primito”, in La Frontera Chica region. 



Of note, El Primito has allegedly been dealing with a coup d'état attempt within Los Metros in recent months, led by El Pezon and El Sierra Flaco, however he has seemed to survive the worst of it as of the writing of this story. 



However, only a month after the non-aggression pact was seemingly broken by the Rio Bravo and Matamoros factions, a sign announcing a new truce between the Metros and the Matamoros faction (as well as the Tampico faction, because again, they work in lockstep with Matamoros) appeared. Whether that truce was upheld or not is up for debate though. 

So, how do these recent events and faction divisions play out in terms of the shooting yesterday? It's too early to say as of the writing of this story but it's something to keep in mind as details such as the names of the four arrested detainees are presumably later released when a judge approves their preventative detention. 

Identifying which subgroup of the CDG the members belonged to may be key to understanding the real nature of the Matamoros event. Whether it was intended to heat up the plaza or if it genuinely was as simple as a trailer theft gone wrong.


Sources: AP, Milenio, El Siglo, Radio Fórmula, El Sol de Centro




Further Reading: 

 

15 Dead In Reynosa Massacre that Broke Non-Aggression Pact 

 

Espartano El Vaquero Arrested

 

Espartano La Droga Arrested



50 comments:

  1. Stupidest civilians involved in helping the criminals get away, in their personal card, oh here my keys for the he Blue car, reminder to civilians, just say down and act dumb, you get nada helping out the ruthless cartels.

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    Replies
    1. Says the one who wasn't there. He has no choice but to help, his not dying for a car.

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    2. People like you who know nothing about how it works over there just need to shut their pothole

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    3. Yeah, "Stupidest civilian" for handing over his car to cartel gunmen huh???...or atleast says the person who be posting with a bunch of misspelled words. 8:21 just a little advise, next time you want to call anyone"Stupidest" make sure your spelling in your posts is accurate because it looks like you are also competing for that crown, especially when you call other people stupid while doing it. You would get my vote

      Delete
  2. What's up with the pheasants helping, the criminals get away. They going to come back and kill them, since they are eye witness to the crime.

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  3. Big time game changer CU is driving ford broncos its over for CJNG.

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  4. The couple should have made them some lunch too. Now who is going to replace thier cars?

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  5. Oh I see we have 3 keyboard ⌨️ Warriors here today. I wonder what will they have done other than crying for their moms.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Just give them the keys 🔑 and stay out there way. Die over a f car ain’t worth it

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    2. Paisa please offer input on the article, instead of being a bully in here.

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    3. Let the tuff guys speak. We might all learn something here. 😆

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    4. Yes Paisa
      You think your all tough Mr know it all smart Alec.

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    5. 23:40 my comment was to the 3 individuals criticizing the guy for giving his keys to the criminals. And it is related to the article and those comments above.

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    6. 2:07 nop I will not be stupid enough to die for a fucking car. I will even give those fools money for gas too.

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    7. 3:19 aint fuckening around its military time up in this motherfucker

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    8. Pinchi piaasa you think your clever, than anyone in here, will end up making you look like a moron, do you see them calling you names when you, are in the wrong?

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    9. Paisa, you're right but often people misunderstand the gist cuz the message (in whatever language) is not their mother tongue.

      Canadian girl💋

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    10. 3:53 I will be a moron if I was insulting a terrified old man facing the barrel of a gun and 4 armed criminals. It is more than clear that the man wasn’t helping the criminals get away. His car got stolen and he was terrified.

      Delete
  6. I don't know who in their right mind is going to look at a few gunmen and tell them NO YOU CANT HAVE MY CAR.

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    Replies
    1. Real talk hay les va la wife la suegra el perro no please lol

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    2. Da Rubio
      Get a gripe
      He did not have to say nothing Mijo.

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    3. I'm not saying hes saying anything. It's more of the comments made above mine where there are some individuals making it seem like you can it should say no or that the man was wrong for handling it the way he did. The fact is that when faced with a situation like this. When killers and guns are around us. . Which it's not recommended in my opinion. I think the man did the right thing. Just my opinion.

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    4. @2:09 isn't that the guy Puerto Rico, that miss H. Is dating.

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    5. Rubio
      You might as well invite the bad guys into your home and offer them fijoles debla hoya, so they can kill you later. Say you already stating a comment, no need to state my opinion 😂.

      Delete
    6. 2:42, just because we went to prom together, doesn't mean we are dating

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    7. 7:56 lol nothing happened after the prom? No fireworks happened.

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    8. 6:37 going out with Rubio made my SS H fall asleep.

      Delete
    9. I would have told him NO cause he wasnt on my insurance policy and Jake from allstate would loose his fucking mind . But I would have called him an uber and offered him a cool beverage and prbly smoked a joint with the dude while we waited for the friendly uber car to get there .

      Delete
  7. Can anyone give us a brief description of the dialogue between the civilians and the sicarios?

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    Replies
    1. At the beginning of the video, I thought they ask for the blue car that belong to the man in he offer the sicarios the black car he saids take the black car mom get in mama said not the black car anyways they need a vehicle he saids to give back some keys that belong to a yellow car i think he’s saving the blue car I don’t see no yellow car at the end the sicarios come back and ask for a truck so. The dude saids yeah we got one lol hopefully the other group don’t see him supplying them with vehicles you got to understand this guys don’t give a f will shoot you with no concern

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    2. Many thanks for the translation,much appreciated my friend

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    3. Stephen will to BB, are you related to Stephen King?

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    4. I believe he’s a retire soldier from Ohio blessings

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    5. Great to see someone that shares the view of "common sense"

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    6. @2:40pm no he's related to Grimes (Canadian artist) former partner of Elon Musk.

      Canadian girl 💋

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    7. The sicarios had ask for the car. Assuming the blue car belongs to the guy because he was leaning on it trying to hide. After he give them the keys they try to open the blue car and it didn’t work. So the ask the man what car belongs to him and the man tells them it was the black one. After that the man said to them take it take it but asked them for some keys back for his other car. In the middle of the incident a woman comes out and he tells the woman to go back in.

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    8. Jalico 1:59 did answer his question.Sorry paizza alittle too late. Don't forget to catch the goose you snail.

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    9. Something like that paisa I wonder donde está el amarillo car lol ?

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  8. Some fool points a gun at me , I will sure give that person my car keys! The guy with the keys is lucky they didn’t shoot him in the mix of it all.

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    Replies
    1. The guns were never pointed at them, review the video Mijo.

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    2. He's lucky he got the other car keys back. At the very least they could have been like"Fu*@ that, there's no time for that right now. I have to get ghost before the military catches up with us". They actually took the time to give them back.

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  9. The taking of thier cars during a shootout, would not have happened to, the couple, if stayed indoors and lock the doors. But then again they choose to stay outside and some came back for the 2nd car. I do understand to give them the keys as life is more important. But I also understand, what the others are stating, that it would not have happened if they stood indoors. There are twovunderstable viewpoints.

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  10. Those guys with those guns are going to take the car regardless,
    They were in desperation running from soldiers. People who are in desperation to save their life and with guns is a bad combination.
    I would give them the keys and let insurance deal with it.
    You could get onother car but you can't get onother life

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love to see dead cartel members

    ReplyDelete
  12. Did any2else notice handcuffs on the guy that's shot up

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    Replies
    1. "One of the men appears to be wearing handcuffs, suggesting he may have been arrested while injured and succumbed to his injuries following his arrest."

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    2. 4:42 the article did mention it, where were you?

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    3. Hearst, just sent email. Bravo to you🐦

      Delete
  13. Tan pendejo son el contador y el maricon del osielillo. Por andar robando les pusieron una verguiza les mataron varios y encerraron varios mas y perdieron 5 trockas. Ya no son ni cartel son unos pandilleros nadamas. Dan lastima y verguenza. Mira nadamas que jodido esta matamoros con estos jotos sin cerebro de lideres. Sigan como van y el maricon del primito se les va a meter a matamoros tambien

    ReplyDelete

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