GOPES Kill 5 Cartel Hitmen on Reynosa-Monterrey Highway, Tamaulipas

"HEARST" for Borderland Beat

A vehicle chase and shootout between alleged Gulf cartel hitmen and agents of the Special Operations Group (GOPES) left a balance of five hitmen dead on the Reynosa-Monterrey highway, in Tamaulipas.

At roughly 8:00 pm on the night of November 20, 2021, hitmen at kilometer 20 of the Reynosa-Monterrey highway, near the Tamaulipas state border with Nuevo Leon, were spotted by GOPES agents. The hitmen were standing near their recent model gray Nissan Infiniti QX50 SUV. 

Radiza and alleged the hitmen were members of the Gulf Cartel (Cartel del Golfo, CDG) but there is no further confirmation of their cartel affiliation in other news sources.  

The hitmen reportedly opened fire at the agents. They the got inside their gray SUV and tried to flee from the GOPES, who began to give chase in their own vehicle. Both groups crossed over into the state of Nuevo Leon as the vehicle pursuit continued. 

As the armed men were speeding down the highway, the hitman's vehicle overturned at around kilometer 30. The driver lost control of the vehicle when they tried to turn to take the exit to the Dos Estados highway that leads to the municipality of Diaz Ordaz. GOPES approached the overturned vehicle, which was wrecked and determined that the five men inside were neutralized. 

Army (SEDENA) and National Guard soldiers arrived in the area to provide support to the GOPES agents.  The five hitmen inside the vehicle were removed from the wreck and determined to no longer show vital signs. Later Forensic Medical personnel were sent to the scene to collect the bodies for autopsy. 

Long barrel firearms, tactical equipment and radios were seized from the inside of the wrecked vehicle as evidence by investigators from the Attorney General’s office. 

Radiza writes that “at the time of going to press, it was unofficially known that among those killed was a leader of a CDG cell,” however, the identity of the regional leader was not specified by Radiza or any other news publication.

Sources: El Mañana Article 1, Article 2, Radiza, Termometro en Linea, Voz En Red, Sentido-Comun, Quadratin, Dominio Medios, Hoy Tamaulipas, Tamaulipas RTC