Investigation and Video Evidence Suggest Imprisoned Marine DID NOT Enter Mexico in Error
Former Marine Andrew Paul Tahmooressi did not enter Mexico by mistake, according to an article published Friday in the Tijuana newspaper ZETATIJUANA.
Information obtained from a surveillance camera video showing Tahmooressi’s entrance into Mexico and investigations done on both sides of the border have led to this conclusion which is included in the investigative package that has been forwarded to the Procuraduría General de la República (PGR), Mexico’s equivalent to our Attorney Generals office. According to the report, this wasn’t the first time Tahmooressi had been in Tijuana and had “personal interest” in Mexico. The statement doesn’t specify when the previous visits to Mexico occurred, however, there is a heavy Marine presence in the southern part of California with Camp Pendleton less than 100 miles north of the border.
Tahmooressi was arrested on April 1, 2014 when he crossed into Mexico carrying a loaded .45 caliber pistol, AR-15 type assault weapon and a 12 gauge shotgun, as well as extra ammo clips and ammunition for all three weapons.
He was charged with being in possession of firearms “reserved exclusively for military use” and faces from 6 to 21 years in Federal prison in Mexico if convicted.
Over the weekend, Tahmooressi was moved from Tijuana’s La Mesa prison where he had been held since his arrest, to El Hongo II, a prison located east of Tijuana near Tecate B.C. El Hongo holds international accreditation by the American Correctional Association (ACA ). Tahmooressi was moved there after medical and psychological evaluation determined he needed to be closely monitored and kept away from other inmates after trying to escape from La Mesa prison on April 8 after talking to his mother on the telephone in the prison. He was quickly recaptured and chained to his bunk as is normal after an escape attempt. He also allegedly attempted suicide with a broken light bulb.
Tahmooressi’s arrest has raised tensions on both sides of the border. As is typical in the U.S. when an American is arrested in Mexico for breaking Mexican gun and weapons laws, Groups led by the prisoners mother, Jill Tahmooressi are DEMANDING, not asking, but DEMANDING Mexico drop all charges and release the former Marine immediately. Protests have been organized outside of Mexican consulates in Miami, San Diego and Phoenix with the expected small attendance and fewer results. A petition to the White House, again demanding President Obama pick up the phone and DEMAND Tahmooressi’s release have only garnered 12,000 or the required 100,000 signatures required for the White House to even respond to the petitioners request and of course, they’re coming out from under their rocks and out of their mommies basements on social media making the same demands, even going as far as calling for volunteers to “lock and load” to secure his release.
And how dare anyone, especially a Mexican military office have the audacity to disagree with the protesters.
Gen. Gabriel García Rincón, commander of Mexico’s Second Military Zone, which includes Tijuana, said in a May 2 interview published in the Tijuana daily El Mexicano, that Tahmooressi’s status as a veteran is irrelevant to the charges he faces. Entering Mexico with firearms is a crime and Tahmooressi is subject to Mexican law.
He entered [Mexico] as an American citizen and must be subject to the laws of our country, without regard to any occupation he may have had,” said García. “Everyone must be subject to our laws without regard to who they are or where they’re from.”
“He probably didn’t mean to, but in the final analysis he broke the law and he must pay the consequences,” said García. “I don’t know the circumstances he has given, but he did bring the weapons [into Mexico].”
YOUR SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS END AT THE U.S. BORDERS
Notice the photo at this top of this article. Those are the weapons Andrew Tahmooressi had in his possession when he crossed into Mexico.
Yes, unfortunately, they’re legal in this country although I question the wisdom of allowing a combat veteran suffering from PTSD from possessing weapons of this type, weapons of war.
I also question would there be all the brouhaha over this if Tahmooressi had “mistakenly” crossed the border into Canada which has similarly strict gun laws as Mexico. I think not.
And then the question needs to be asked, if he suffers from PTSD, why is he traveling cross country, armed to the teeth for treatment? Isn’t treatment available in Florida? PTSD has been around since WWI. It was called “shell shock” back then, but the soldiers suffering from it didn’t go through life using it as a crutch, an excuse to avoid their societal responsibilities.
It’s time for people to back off and let the justice system in Mexico work as it is designed to work. The more pressure and demands that people make, the longer this will drag out. Because at the end of the day, when it is all said and done, the excuses and fabricated excuses have been told, this guy still broke Mexican law, a very serious Mexican law and will be held accountable for his actions, as he should be.
[GARD]
This post is part of the thread: US Marine Andrew Paul Tahmooressi - an ongoing story on this site. View the thread timeline for more context on this post.

And how dare anyone, especially a Mexican military office date to disagree with the protesters.
DARE- I think you mean dare…not date.
bzy123 You are correct sir and thanks so much for catching that little error. It has been corrected.
He was in San Diego to seek treatment for his PTSD at the La Jolla VA as the VA’s in Southern Fla are a) full and b) having horrible problems. The La Jolla VA has a new/state of the art PTSD facility.
I agree…He broke the law whether it be by mistake or not. He illegally Mexico illegally. Now to send a message of just how serious it is to cross the border illegally I say we make absolute certain it doesn’t happen coming the other way either and if it does then they too should be put in jail…
Very well written article. I have not been following this story much, all I can originally recall is seeing “Marine held in Mexico after crossing border by mistake”. Came to your site from Greta’s site. The fact that he is a Marine that served in combat is used to elicit emotion. I agree with the article. He broke some very serious laws. And to think, that a Marine with PTSD is riding around in America with these weapons is scary! And his friend is extremely irresponsible to allow a man with mental issues near his home and children with weapons.
Mexico is a completely corrupted, narco state so it’s no wonder people are suspicious. I think Fox News is the best of all news networks hand down, but their coverage has been heavily one sided. There is more to this story, believed it from the beginning. I recruited in Chula Vista for 4 years and as a military member we weren’t even allowed to go across the border. He’s an idiot for sure and deserves what comes.
I would take exception to your claims of Mexico being totally corrupted and a narco state, but I can understand where your coming from with all of the talking heads making those ridiculous claims. Listen to Fox News and their mouthpiece’s and others, you’d think Mexico was a 24/7 war zone which it is not.
The rest I agree with. It is interesting that Fox News completely ignores the 457 rounds of ammo he was carrying and keeps pointing out that the weapons were legally purchased in the U.S. which has no bearing on what he is accused of.