Military Shootout Against Kidnappers, Shooting Near Children's Soccer Game Attack, Zacatecas

"HEARST" for Borderland Beat

A battle between the military and members of organized crime right on the border between the states of Zacatecas and San Luis Potosi left 1 soldier dead, 1 cartel member dead, 3 cartel members arrested, and 16 victims of kidnapping rescue. 

Later, four metropolitan police officers in the city of Zacatecas in the state of Zacatecas were killed while they were off duty and one more officer is being reported as missing. Video of the crowd at a children’s soccer game cowering on the ground, hiding from the nearby shooting, emerged online, standing as a stark reminder of the disruption to normalcy these cartel shootings cause for children growing up in Mexico.

The Villa de Cos Raid

On October 9, 2021, the Army (SEDENA) implemented a special operation targeting a group of organized crime in Villa de Cos, Zacatecas. The official press release from the State Attorney General’s office says this operation was part of the “interstate operations that the security forces have been carrying out in that area in order to provide greater security.”

The interstate operation aspect is due to Villa de Cos zacatecas being quite close to the border with the neighboring state of San Luis Potosi, specifically the municipality of Santo Domingo. Allegedly the shootout between the military and the cartel members began in Villa de Cos but ended in Santo Domingo, near the town of El Salado (officially named San Juan del Salado). 

Very few photos and details about how the shooting occurred are currently available. Only the results of the shootout are described in detail by news reports. 

During the shootout two people were reportedly killed: one by the aggressors and one by personnel of the 40th Infantry Battalion of the Ministry of National Defense. Three alleged kidnappers were arrested by members of the military and 16 kidnapped persons were rescued and will be released after processing by authorities. 

A total of seven firearms were seized: One .50 caliber Barret rifle, one 7.62 mm firearm, three AK47-style firearms, and two R15-style firearms. An additional two tactical helmets and two tactical vests were also seized. 

Finally, a whopping and almost inexplicable 43 vehicles were seized. The press release details that of the 43: 

• 10 are pickup trucks
• 30 are cars (automóviles, could refer to a number of types of vehicles such as SUVs, sedans)
• 3 are motorcycles 

It is believed that in this area of San Luis Potosi of Santo Domingo, the Gulf Cartel (Cartel del Golfo, CDG) controls the area. Who controls Villa de Cos in Zacatecas is a bit less clear. 

It is always possible that the kidnappers were not members of a larger cartel group and instead were a small-time operation who merely were paying a fee to the cartel group who controlled the territory in order to be allowed to do business.

Some social media users such as NarcoGuerraMX are claiming that the three operatives arrested were actually from the Sinaloa Cartel Mayo Zambada faction.

They write that “The operation was carried out due to information that referred to a meeting between criminals who were allegedly going to try to make an alliance in the community of Cervantes. Unofficially it was reported that among those arrested was the criminal leader identified by the alias of ‘El Azteca’, one of the main perpetrators of violence in the state, however as of Sunday night this information could not be confirmed, so there is speculation that the criminal leader may have managed to escape from the place.”

Zacatecas City Shooting

They also claim an armed confrontation which occurred that same day of October 9, 2021, near the Unidad Deportiva Benito Juárez (Benito Juárez Sports Complex), in the city of Zacateca, was an act of retaliation against law enforcement and the military for daring to attempt to arrest El Azteca. This attack occurred near the outside of a field having a children’s soccer game. 

Video Source: Lopez Doriga

In videos of the Zacactecas city attack, children and their parents can be seen lying down on the ground. One child can be seen crying and hugging his soccer ball out of fear of the loud gunshots occurring just a few meters away. 

Aristegui Noticias reports that the shooting which alarmed the soccer game at approximately 3:00 pm when four policemen were executed behind the back of the Control Center, Video-surveillance and Police Command (C5) in Zacatecas capital. 

Video Source: PavelLanda

Video Source: AgrosiFuentes

The victims are four men who worked as metropolitan policemen, who were on their day off and were inside a vehicle parked at the site. During the chase in search of the attackers, one more police officer was injured, who is reported as stable. There is also a missing metropolitan police officer who was at the scene of the attack, which may suggest he was kidnapped. 

Later, the alleged vehicle in which the attackers were traveling, which corresponds to a white Volkswagen Jetta, was found abandoned in the Francisco Villa neighborhood.

Sources: Official Press Release, Lopez Doriga, Codigo San Luis, San Luis Al Instante Article 1, Article 2, ContraReplica, UnoTV, Imagen Zac, Express Zacatecas, Pulso SLP,  NarcoGuerraMX Post 1, Post 2, Aristegui Noticias, El Sol de México