La Línea and Sinaloa Cartel Gunfight Leaves 4 Dead Near Chihuahua–Texas Border Crossing

"Morogris" for Borderland Beat

Authorities confirmed the parties involved were La Linea and the Sinaloa Cartel. This highway connects with the US-Mexico border crossing in Tornillo, Texas, east of El Paso County (image credit: Diario de Juarez)

The shootout that occurred during the early hours of this Wednesday on Libramiento Oriente, a new highway south of Ciudad Juárez, was confirmed to have been a confrontation between members of La Linea and the Sinaloa Cartel. Four people were killed during the shootout.

This was confirmed by the Chihuahua prosecutor César Jáuregui, who also announced that authorities are contemplating erecting a security camp at the highway due to the numerous confrontations that have taken place there.

"All signs point towards an intrusion that individuals associated with organized crime (La Línea) aimed to carry out into a region that has been under the dominion of a different faction (Sinaloa Cartel). We possess information that will guide us in this direction, as we are conducting an investigation involving an individual who was likely present during the incident," Jáuregui Moreno stated.

Spanning a distance of 31 kilometers (19 miles), the Samalayuca–Tornillo roadway stretches from slightly north of the sand dunes community of Samalayuca, situated south of Ciudad Juarez, and extends to the Tornillo–Guadalupe International Bridge, located to the southeast of El Paso, Texas.

Approximately 70 bullet casings were tallied by investigators at the sites of the shootings, as stated by state police. While most of the victims have yet to be identified, one individual has been named: Eduardo Francisco P. F., a toll booth attendant, who tragically lost his life, potentially caught in the midst of the crossfire.

Among the vehicles involved, three bore Texas license plates. These included a 2020 GMC Yukon XL in gray, a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado in black, and a 2012 Toyota Sequoia, also in black. None of these vehicles had been reported as stolen, according to information provided by the state police.

Two additional vehicles were present: an unregistered red 2016 Dodge Ram 1500, reported stolen in 2021, and a white 2011 GMC displaying Chihuahua plates. Notably, two of the trucks contained blue camouflage-style attire.

The extent of potential injuries sustained by others remains uncertain, as they might have been transported to hospitals by their comrades. Investigators are looking into this matter with hospitals in the surrounding areas of Guadalupe, Chihuahua.

The new highway, displayed in blue, leads to the US border crossing. Authorities say they are worried that more shootouts may occur here as La Linea continues to make incursions into this region (image credit: Norte Digital)

Previous attacks in new highway

Over the past few months, multiple incidents of gunfire have occurred within the vicinity of the newly constructed highway in the Valley of Juárez.

Towards the end of May, Dulce Mijares, a beauty queen from Guadalupe, Chihuahua, along with her parents, were injured after their vehicle was pursued and fired upon by gunmen.

Additionally, during the same month, local news outlets reported another incident in which a former municipal police officer Juan Manuel Esquivel Herrera and his 15-year-old son lost their lives in a separate shooting. The officer's wife, Liliana Morones, who was also a former police officer, was shot in the head and died weeks later from her injuries.

The construction of the Samalayuca–Tornillo highway was undertaken with the purpose of mitigating the congestion of commercial truck traffic that typically traverses through the border crossings in the international metropolitan area of Ciudad Juárez and El Paso, Texas. 

Shootout sources: Diario de Juarez (1); (2); (3); (4); El Paso Times

Shootout images: Diario de Juarez