Four Americans kidnapped in Mexican city of Matamoros- What we know so far

Four American citizens were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in Mexico. Mexican officials confirm that four American citizens crossed the border to reach Mexico last week to buy medicine. The four men were travelling in a white minivan through the Mexican city of Matamoros when unidentified gunmen opened fire on them. Video revealed them being put in a pickup truck by heavily armed men.

According to Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the four American men had a confrontation with the other group of men after which they were detained.

The US Ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar told a different story in his statement. He said that the four American men were kidnapped at gunpoint and an ‘innocent’ Mexican citizen died in the attack. He said various US justice agencies were working with their Mexican counterparts to recover the missing persons. The authorities concerned from both sides have not provided any further details about the victims or the event.

According to a report by CNN, the four Americans who got kidnapped on Friday were a tight-knit group of friends from South Carolina. They were travelling to Mexico to help the mother of one of them so that she could undergo a medical procedure across the border.

What happened after four American citizens crossed the border over to Mexico?

The four American men came under gunfire from the men shortly after crossing the border on Friday through the city of Matamoros, in the Tamaulipas state, across from Brownsville, Texas. The victims crossed into Mexico in a white minivan with a North Carolina license plate, the FBI said. Shortly after, the gunmen fired upon the passengers in the vehicle. Afterwards, the four Americans were placed in another vehicle and taken away from the scene by the men.

Tamaulipas’ chief prosecutor, Irving Barrios, said a Mexican woman died in the attack. It is not clear whether she was killed in the same gunfight where the kidnapping took place.

President Joe Biden had been informed of the situation, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Monday. She declined to answer other questions, citing privacy concerns.

Who are the four American kidnapped in Mexico?

The names of all four victims are not revealed by the authorities to maintain secrecy. But Zalandria Brown of Florence, South Carolina, said she has been in contact with the FBI and local officials after learning that her younger brother, Zindell Brown, is one of the four victims.

Matamoros, Mexico

Matamoros is a city located across the US border from Brownsville, Texas. The city has been notorious for its growing violence which is majorly related to drug trafficking and other organised crimes. Tamnaulipas' highways are considered among the most dangerous in Mexico due to the threat of kidnapping and extortion by criminal gangs.

The US consulate in Matamoros had issued an alert on Friday warning of police activity in connection with a shooting in the city. The US State Department advises against travel to Tamaulipas due to crime and kidnapping.

"Organized crime activity,including gun battles, murder, armed robbery, carjacking, kidnapping, forced disappearances, extortion, and sexual assault, is common along the northern border and in Ciudad Victoria," the state capital, according to a US travel advisory.

What did Zindell Brown’s sister saidabout her brother’s kidnapping?

Brown said her brother, who lives in South Carolina, and her three friends were extremely close to each other. They had planned to split up driving duties for the trip. They were aware of the dangers in Mexico.

"Zindell kept saying, ‘We shouldn’t go down,'" Brown said. “This is like a bad dream you wish you could wake up from. To see a member of your family thrown in the back of a truck and dragged is just unbelievable.”

Mexico- a popular destination for cheaper medical treatments

Mexico has become a popular destination for ‘medical tourism’ that attracts a lot of travellers who want cheaper alternatives or medical treatments that are unapproved in the US. The CDC had already warned of this growing trend as it might carry dangerous risks depending on the destination and facility, including infection and possible post-procedure complications.

Search and investigation for missing Americans underway

Investigators trying to locate the US citizens and identify those involved in the alleged kidnapping have been working to gather surveillance footage, collect ballistics and fingerprint evidence, take biological samples for genetic profiles and process the vehicles involved, Tamaulipas officials said.

A joint task force of federal and state agencies has been created for processing all the information and maintaining constant communication with the US officials, Barrios Mojica, the Tamaulipas Attorney General, said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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