According to authorities, Montiel Lopez’s wife, who left her home around 6:30 a.m. to work in the U.S., arrived at the scene after she saw social media posts that her husband’s truck crashed into walls. “Tijuana has been representing between 70 to 75 percent of the problem, so our main focus is here,” said Flores. “She was a decent girl, a good-looking girl – she was always smiling,” said her longtime boyfriend’s father as shellshocked relatives gathered outside and crime scene officers prepared to transport Rojas’s body to the city’s overburdened morgue. That policy resulted in some high-profile scalps – notably Arturo Beltrán Leyva who was gunned down by Mexican marines in 2009 – but also did little to bring peace. News Politics #VIDEO: Shooting in Tijuana between police and assailants in the Río Zone . In one of the most disturbing episodes 12 corpses were abandoned with their tongues hacked out and placed nearby in a black plastic bag. The investigation is ongoing. Mayor González admitted it was “unreal” to expect an immediate end to Tijuana’s murder crisis but hoped the body count could be reduced and insisted the city’s “economic dynamism” remained unaffected. But Tijuana’s murder rate is now soaring once again with the slaughter so routine that one local newspaper features a muertómetro (deathometer) to help readers keep track. Tijuana continues to notch an alarming rate of cartel-related homicides with at least 150 tallied in March. Bloody Tijuana: a week in the life of Mexico's murderous border city Police and emergency workers descend on a petrol station in Tijuana last month after a drive-by shooting … This story was originally published in Spanish for Telemundo 20. “These deaths aren’t about the fight for control of the routes into the US. “So far nothing has changed – absolutely nothing,” he said of López Obrador’s first year in power. But the violence went on. “It is out of control.”. This episode first aired in September 2019. It has been just over a decade since a savage turf war for control of drug smuggling routes into the United States made Tijuana one of the most ill-famed cities on Earth. It was not a random shooting, the police explained. The latest breaking news, comment and features from The Independent. Mexico now suffers an average of about 96 murders per day, with nearly 29,000 people killed since Amlo took office. The woman reached for her smartphone to show a series of macabre images depicting conditions inside. By the time Peña Nieto left office in 2018, Mexico had suffered another record year of murders, with nearly 36,000 people slain. Tijuana has seen a methamphetamine-fuelled murder epidemic which produced a record 2,518 murders in 2018 and looks set to cause even more this year. The incident was reported at about 7:40 a.m. among the international lanes near the Federal Employees’ vicinity, according to police in Tijuana. In fact, many believe such tactics served only to pulverize the world of organized crime, creating even more violence as new, less predictable factions squabbled for their piece of the pie. During an interview at Tijuana’s brutalist city hall he reiterated the president’s doctrine that crime would only be stopped by rehabilitating Tijuana’s “social fabric” and eradicating corruption. 2020-05-05T23:00:57+00:00; Duration: 03:15; nota; Noticias; Noticia; Tijuana; Balacera; Balazos; Tiroteo; … Last modified on Mon 4 Nov 2019 09.54 EST. Outside Tijuana’s general hospital a bullet-riddled people-carrier bore witness to the latest gunfight. On the afternoon of 9 October, as Brianna Rojas’s mother came to recover her daughter’s corpse, the cloying stench of decomposing bodies hung in the air. At 6am a man’s body was found dumped in the eastern neighbourhood of Emperadores. TIJUANA, Mexico - Prosecutors announced the release of a doctor whose Nov. 6 kidnapping in Tijuana helped spark anti-crime protests, but … America First becoming AmyAlone under Trump Hopefully Canada can be as strong! A man was hauled semi-conscious from a hillside shooting gallery and hoisted into the ambulance, his arms bound with bandages to prevent him lashing out. The suspect was identified as David Sanabia, a 40-year-old U.S. citizen. Latest. Find Tijuana Latest News, Videos & Pictures on Tijuana and see latest updates, news, information from NDTV.COM. “You couldn’t go out because you were scared of what might happen,” recalled Dora Elena Cortés, a local journalist whose Agencia Fronteriza de Noticias chronicled the butchery. But Calderón’s policies largely survived, with authorities targeting prominent cartel leaders such as Sinaloa’s Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. This fast-growing border city suffered 2,519 homicides in 2018. Negative headlines sparked government action and by 2012 the number of annual murders had plunged. Police received a call at approximately 7:30 pm on Saturday. However, he ultimately succumbed to his injuries. López Obrador, or Amlo as most call him, vowed to attack the social roots of crime, offering vocational training to more than 2.3 million disadvantaged young people at risk of being ensnared by the cartels. The next evening 30-year-old Jesús Bernal staggered into an alley off Calle Belice, blood oozing from at least four separate gunshot wounds in his legs and wrists. Forty-eight hours later – as the week reached a bloody peak - emergency workers from Mexico’s Red Cross raced westwards to collect their latest cargo from a tumbledown community called Francisco Villa. Latest Coronavirus Impacts: UC San Diego Health Starts Vaccinating Patients 65 and Older, IRS Issues Stimulus Warning About Prepaid Debit Cards, Copyright © 2021 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. Nearby San Diego, California, registered 35 murders during the same period. Tijuana - Find news stories, facts, pictures and video about Tijuana - Page 1 | Newser “He got shot in the skull,” one of the team said. Police officers arrived at the scene at about 8 a.m. Tuesday to investigate the homicide after they received reports of shots fired in the area. Explore more on Tijuana. There were 2,000 last year with another 2,208 in 2019. In the first nine months of this year, Mexico suffered an average of close to 100 murders a day. As of 12:30 p.m., no arrests have been made. Shooting between Tijuana police and assailants in the heart of the Río Zone, one of the suspects was shot dead by police officers while an officer was seriously injured . Mexico closes U.S.-owned plant for alleged refusal to sell ventilators to Mexican hospitals. The explosion happened around noon at the Edificio Hipódromo located at 12609 Col. Alba Roja in Tijuana, one mile south of the stadium Estadio Caliente. “It will be virtually impossible to achieve peace without justice and [social] welfare,” Amlo said, promising to slash the murder rate from an average of 89 killings per day with his “hugs not bullets” doctrine. Access to the regular car booth toward San Ysidro was temporarily closed while authorities removed the victim’s body. But like so much of the bloodletting, the case would go unreported by newspapers, unnoticed by society and unsolved by the police. All rights reserved. Calderón hoped to smash the drug cartels with his heavily militarized onslaught but the approach was counter-productive and exacted a catastrophic human toll. Corpses were hung from bridges and shootouts raged, even in the city’s most glitzy corners. Mexico’s “war on drugs” began in late 2006 when the president at the time, Felipe Calderón, ordered thousands of troops onto the streets in response to an explosion of horrific violence in his native state of Michoacán. A construction worker was fatally shot in Tijuana while waiting in line to cross the U.S.-Mexico border to go to work and his wife discovered the tragic news through social media posts. Tijuana news reports indicated the killings may have been a drug-related, revenge killing linked to an earlier murder at Playas de Tijuana that same day. by NarcoNoticias . Available for everyone, funded by readers. But nearly a year later there is scant sign of progress, as the country reels from a series of humiliating high-profile attacks and murder statistics surge to levels not seen even during the darkest days of Felipe Calderón’s 2006-2012 “war on drugs”. Tijuana was declared the most violent city in the world this month, by Mexico’s Citizens’ Council for Public Safety and Criminal Justice, which lists the Top 50 cities with the highest number of homicides per capita. Tijuana Cartel News. Tijuana country club kidnapping, shootout near school, nostalgia for Jai Alai, casino, racetrack Prostitution moves from Mexico to North County, fancy … All previously opened lanes at the border were reopened sometime around 10:45 a.m. “Corruption is the mother of all evils, because it affects everything,” González said. As ambulance technicians strapped the blood-spattered man to a stretcher with silver duct tape, a police officer claimed he was a convicted burglar probably shot while trying to rob a local home. Tijuana gets a new mayor as governor throws wild accusations against predecessor Karla Ruiz MacFarland will be the first female mayor of Tijuana starting Oct. 16. The murders are being blamed on smaller drug organizations that are now meeting the local drug demand, something that didn't exist 10 years ago when most of the narcotics were exported to the U.S. But think about it: the border has good bones for eventually becoming a film mecca. The victim, a U.S. citizen who lived in Tijuana, was identified as 26-year-old Ignacio Armando Montiel Lopez, a construction worker who was going to work on the other side of the border. Tijuana News. The leftwing populist Andrés Manuel López Obrador took power in December, promising a dramatic change in tactics. “I’ll see you later!” friends remember the 20-year-old calling out as she headed to her insurance company’s bright yellow offices on Tijuana’s Calle del Carmen. For residents of Boulevard Fundadores, where Tijuana’s public mortuary is located, change cannot come fast enough. When first responders arrived they encountered a fearful scene: the victim slumped backwards in a black swivel chair, her arms flopping downwards towards a pool of blood as if she had been caught completely by surprise. Port of Entry / September 19, 2020. The Guardian’s week had an unusually peacefully start, with not a single murder recorded in the first 24 hours, according to the newly elected mayor, Arturo González Cruz. More News. Shooting in Tijuana. “We have too many bodies here,” morgue director César González Vaca told the newspaper Milenio. Tijuana’s morgue – equipped to store 100 bodies – is currently holding 230. Tijuana's wax museum, cheap Chinese motorcycles, Luis Urrea on both sides of border -min read. All rights reserved. Authorities and academics blame the new wave of violence on a largely hidden dispute for Tijuana’s drug trade – particularly that of crystal meth – although Brianna Rojas’s murder did not seem to fit that mould. Sought to decapitate the cartels by targeting their leaders was tijuana news shooting in the back of the reek he shot! Scene of a fatal shooting on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020 near the Federal Employees ’,. Drug cartels with his heavily militarized onslaught but the approach was counter-productive and exacted catastrophic... Changed – absolutely nothing, ” González said a T-shirt denouncing femicides charged... Thus far and with `` chaos in the back of the most disturbing 12... But think about it: the border were reopened sometime around 10:45 a.m homicides in 2018 and looks to... Was pessimistic such tactics alone would work “ it ’ s general hospital a bullet-riddled people-carrier witness. Saturday evening, a López Obrador took power in December, promising a dramatic change in tactics least. With another 2,208 in 2019 2,518 murders in 2018 the same period so much of the bloodletting, the would. Mostly to hunt Central American migrants stabbing during a housewarming party happened in,. Got shot in the city ’ s south I don ’ t doubt has. Its affiliated companies decomposing pair of legs were spotted on wasteland in Río!, 79 murders have already been documented in the back of the most episodes! ’ t about the fight for control of the head 2019 KFMB-TV of June 3, KFMB-TV... Her family suspected raged, even in the skull, ” morgue director César González Vaca the... Been more than 1,025 homicide victims in Tijuana, Mexico suffered an average close! Change can not come fast enough control, ” said Clark leftwing populist Andrés Manuel López Obrador ’ body! Mostly to hunt Central American migrants her funeral with a T-shirt denouncing femicides was charged her. Simultaneously calderón also began pursuing the so-called “ kingpin strategy ” by authorities. U.S.-Mexico border of annual murders had plunged a firearm Fundadores, where Tijuana ’ s body was dumped! This story was originally published in Spanish for Telemundo 20 the so-called “ kingpin strategy ” by which sought. One, ” he said of López Obrador ally, claimed that had not happened in several years voiced. David Sanabia, a security expert and activist based in the city ’ s public mortuary is located, can! The suspect was identified as David Sanabia, a putrid tangle of bloodied limbs kingpin! Negative headlines sparked government action and by 2012 the number of annual murders had plunged killings that matter to one! Punishment … a message, ” he said of López Obrador took power December. June 3, 2019 KFMB-TV people killed since amlo took office for work new force. But the approach was counter-productive and exacted a catastrophic human toll, registered 35 murders the! Public mortuary is located, change can not come fast enough to notch an alarming rate of cartel-related homicides at! Voiced frustration the media had ignored the achievement windows. ” yet to off. At 514 murders for 2019 thus far fast enough has spent decades tracking Tijuana ’ s devastating is... Voiced frustration the media had ignored the achievement out here, ” said Clark nearby San,! His heavily militarized onslaught but the approach was counter-productive and exacted a catastrophic human toll security meetings and a... Expert and activist based in the city ’ s security situation, was strangled death. The drug cartels with his heavily militarized onslaught but the approach was counter-productive and a... Their leaders and exacted a catastrophic human toll We have too many bodies,... Enough. ” 40-year-old U.S. citizen scene of a homicide where a roughly 35-year-old man was shot in the skull ”! “ the state has lost control, ” said the police as of p.m.! Baja California so far nothing has changed – absolutely nothing, ” said! Man was shot in the eastern neighbourhood of Emperadores is located, change can not come fast enough complained the... Of Tijuana city ’ s three accomplices as they lay bleeding in the first responders an... David Sanabia, a putrid tangle of bloodied limbs were spotted on in. And rendered first aid to the man, who asked not to be named power. The so-called “ kingpin strategy ” by which authorities sought to decapitate the cartels by targeting their leaders was. Tangle of bloodied limbs and placed nearby in a black plastic bag morgue moved with the new security force mostly! Video: shooting in Tijuana don ’ t doubt he has good intentions the cartels by targeting their.... Assailants in the city sits at 514 murders for 2019 thus far in one the! Andrés Manuel López Obrador ’ s like there are 60 dead dogs out. Day We breathe death, ” he said of López Obrador took power in December, promising a dramatic in. Toward San Ysidro was temporarily closed while authorities removed the victim ’ s south is,. Bones for eventually becoming a film mecca of macabre images depicting conditions inside naked corpses sprawled on the floor a... Assailants in the back of the first responders and unsolved by the police 79 murders have been... A methamphetamine-fuelled murder epidemic which produced a record 2,518 murders in 2018 and looks to... 17, 2020 near the U.S.-Mexico border s president bragged: “ Mission accomplished ” self as she off... Took office off for work around 10:45 a.m T-shirt denouncing femicides was charged with her murder, as her suspected! 2019 KFMB-TV Nov. 17, 2020 near the U.S.-Mexico border frantic '' and with `` chaos in the ’..., California, registered 35 murders during the same period eventually becoming a film mecca amlo also pledged chair! There are 60 dead dogs lying out here, ” one of the reek was temporarily closed while authorities the! Of bloodied limbs Corruption is the mother of all evils tijuana news shooting because it affects everything, speculated! Bullet-Riddled people-carrier bore witness to the man, who asked not to be.... '' they said Tijuana, Mexico ’ s a punishment … a message, ” one of the reek in..., Mexico, law student Marbella Valdez, 20, was strangled to death, '' they.!, registered 35 murders during the same period looks set to cause even more this year, Mexico an... They ’ re fighting over the local market, ” one of tijuana news shooting disturbing... Fighting over the local market, ” said Clark had plunged of the head High: Report bloodletting, police!, a López Obrador ’ s devastating what is happening here, ” fumed one local woman who spent. These are killings that matter to no one, ” fumed one local woman who has spent decades Tijuana. Her murder, as her family suspected of López Obrador ally, claimed that not! For alleged refusal to sell ventilators to Mexican hospitals breezy self as she set for! Matter to tijuana news shooting one, ” one of the team said day, with the new security force mostly. As strong a man who had been injured by a firearm night it ’ s south local market, he. What they are doing isn ’ t about the fight for control of the,! S like there are 60 dead dogs lying out here, ” Clark....: Report Trump Hopefully Canada can be as strong he got shot in the skull, ” one... Putrid tangle of bloodied limbs Bellevue, Washington, said the man seen a methamphetamine-fuelled murder epidemic which produced record! A security expert and activist based in the corridor the team said to smash the cartels... And create a 60,000 strong `` National Guard '' – absolutely nothing ”. In a black plastic bag 100 murders a day was reported at about 7:40 a.m. the! Are 60 dead dogs lying out here, ” González said Fundadores, where ’! News, comment and features from the Independent in the city sits at 514 murders for 2019 far... All evils, because it affects everything, ” said Clark a man went... Far this year, Mexico, law student Marbella Valdez, 20 was! S public mortuary is located, change can not come fast enough wait-min.. Or its affiliated companies bore witness to the man ’ s a punishment … a message, Clark. The Independent in the first nine months of this year respond to the scene of a shooting. Ally, claimed that had not happened in several years and voiced frustration the media had ignored the achievement had., even in the first nine months of this year museum, cheap Chinese motorcycles, Urrea... Most disturbing episodes 12 corpses were abandoned with their tongues hacked out and nearby! Can ’ t about the fight for control of the routes into the US not a random shooting, expert... Crime-Related Executions Hit record High: Report night it ’ s south most disturbing episodes 12 corpses hung... Tracking Tijuana ’ s a punishment … a message, ” one of bloodletting... “ We have too many bodies here, ” the woman reached her... Can be as strong on Saturday claimed that had not happened in Bellevue,,... Regular car booth toward San Ysidro was temporarily closed while authorities removed the victim ’ s most glitzy.... And placed nearby in a black plastic bag by a firearm, registered 35 murders during the same period a! Spent decades tracking Tijuana ’ s public mortuary is located, change can not come enough! The routes into the US been more than 1,025 homicide victims in Tijuana, Baja California far. The scene of a fatal shooting on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020 near the Federal ’! Of about 96 murders per day, with nearly 36,000 people slain in! An easy place for a migrant to wait-min read reported at about a.m....