Pueblo: Simultaneous Confrontations Between Huachicoleros and Authorities

Translated by Yaqui for Borderland Beat from: Excelsior

                                    Huachicoleros face off with soldiers and police in Puebla

Puebla, Puebla By: Fernando Pérez Corona
On Aug 31 in San Cristóbal Tepatlaxco, the huachicoleros , ie fuel thieves, drove back the soldiers, whose withdrawal allowed them to flee the area where they were transporting illegal fuel. 

In the La Purisima neighborhood, the huachicoleros assaulted police officers from the Public Security Secretariat.  

In San Martin Texmelucan , elements of the Mexican Army and alleged huachicoleros held two clashes on Friday morning. Meanwhile, another group of probable criminals also dedicated to the theft of fuel, ie hydrocarbon products, including gasoine and LP gas ,collided with state police .

To begin with, in San Cristóbal Tepatlaxco , the huachicoleros drove back the soldiers, whose retreat allowed them to flee the area where they transported illegal fuel.

Almost at par, in the community of San Lucas Atoyatenco , the uniformed men found subjects when they were extracting hydrocarbons from a pipeline of Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) through a clandestine outlet.

Finally, in the La Purísima neighborhood , the huachicoleros attacked elements of the Public Security Secretariat with bullets, without any reports of injuries or deaths on either side.

Two trailers were burned in both directions of the highway;  hundreds of motorists were stranded for almost three hours.  After the controntations , the alleged huachicoleros closed the Mexico- Puebla Highway. The alleged criminals beat a tractor trailer driver who tried to cross the road and the fuel thieves used of his unit as part of the blockade .

The past August 5, for almost three hours was closed to vehicular traffic  Mexico-Puebla highway, at the height of kilometer 99, because they were burned two trailers by hooded subjects , after holding a gun battle with soldiers of the Mexican Army.

That clash between alleged huachicoleros and uniformed occurred in  Santa Ana Xalmimilulco, community of the municipality of Huejotzingo .

Apparently one of the men involved in the shooting died , so his accomplices closed the road section.

Hundreds of  motorists and transporters were stranded in the area  and with the passage of minutes they were warned that it could happen again soon since last  week  residents of Santa Rita Tlahuapan blocked this same highway for almost nine hours.

It has also been noted that the criminals robbed and beat drivers who were driving at kilometer 99 , as registered by Federal Roads and Bridges, as well as by the Federal Police.

Through social networks,  users of the road said that the passage was blocked at the height of commuter traffic near that community, so that huge rows of vehicles were formed in both directions, until around 19 hours in which the movement of traffic was reactivated.

According to the motorists complaints,  the protesters decided to take the toll booth in protest against the death of a man , allegedly involved in the theft of fuel, after a confrontation with the State Police. 

Some motorists said that  the hooded ones arrived to take the booth and charge 20 pesos, to let them pass . Around 8 pm, federal police conducted revisions , ie inspections, between 104 and 108 kilometers, after the blockade, in order to prevent and deter any crime, in addition to preventing road users becoming victims of theft.

NOTE: This last sequence of events is a tad confusing, I admit that I have not been able to sort it all out.