Sep 09

Mexican Federal Police in shootout with local cops in Torreon Coahuila

By PMC Narco Wars Comments Off

Federal police opened fire on municipal cops in the northern city of Torreón early Monday, killing at least one and arresting about 30, said the city’s mayor.

Mexican news reports characterized the pre-dawn altercation as a firefight between federal and local police officers. Federal authorities had no immediate comment.

The incident began when federal police detained two Torreón officers and 28 city patrol vehicles responded to a call for backup, said Mayor José Ángel Pérez by phone Monday afternoon.

“It appears (the arrested officers) were discovered mixed up in a problem with a truck that was in an irregular situation,” Pérez said. “We don’t know if it was for drugs or why. … We don’t have the official information.”

Pérez said it was unclear why so many patrol vehicles answered the call for help. After the incident, he fired the city’s chief of police for not being able to control the officers.

“There was a confrontation but we don’t know if there was a (shooting) response from our police,” the mayor said.

The federal public security ministry, which oversees the federal police apparently involved in the shooting, provided no information on the incident. A spokeswoman for the federal attorney general’s office said the detained city officers were being held for questioning but no charges were announced.

SOURCES: Sean Mattson San Antonio Express News
El Siglo de Torreon


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Sep 03

Cd. Juárez to fire 400 police officers who failed “Confidence Exams”

By PMC Narco Wars Comments Off
A Juarez Police SWAT Team prepares to hit the streets. These officers have been vetted and deemed honest. The Juarez Police admit many of their officers are corrupt and paid off by the cartels.

A Juarez Police SWAT Team prepares to hit the streets. These officers have been vetted and deemed honest. The Juarez Police admit many of their officers are corrupt and paid off by the cartels.

More than 400 members of the Juárez police department will be dismissed after failing confidence exams done by the Mexico federal Public Safety secretary’s office, Juárez Mayor Jose Reyes Ferriz said.

About 2,000 soldiers arrived in Juárez over the weekend and are expected to begin anti-crime patrols as part of Operation Juárez, the new name of Joint Operation Chihuahua, the local federal offensive against organized crime.

“It’s important that citizens know the Mexican army will be doing patrols throughout the city to stop the collateral crimes generated as a result of Joint Operation Chihuahua,” Reyes Ferriz said.

The city police department has offered the military 65 vehicles for the patrols.

The city has recruited about 900 new officers in recent months as authorities have been unable to stop a crime wave this year, including more than 900 homicides, more than 50 bank robberies, a jump in auto thefts and other crimes.

Officials said the confidence exams by federal authorities found that some Juárez officers had criminal histories in other states. Some had been fired from other agencies.

Other officers were found to have been bribed or had ties to organized crime.

Reyes Ferriz said that federal public safety officials made a registry of fingerprints, DNA samples, voice and iris scans of the officers tested to allow federal authorities to track their future activities.

How can this be? In a country, according to Dale “The Trucking Bozo” Sommers and his son Steve and of course Eric “Bubba Bo” Boulanger, that has no DATA BASES to track Mexican Truck Drivers and others? They are compiling a DATABASE of DNA Samples, Voice prints and iris scans, biometrics in other words? Kudos to the Mayor and Federal Officials for their ongoing efforts


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Aug 30

Hundreds of thousands of Mexicans protest crime nationwide

By PMC Mexico Today Comments Off

Demonstrators hold up candles at the main Zocalo square in Mexico City during a protest against the tide of killings, kidnappings and shootouts sweeping the country, Saturday, Aug. 30, 2008. More than 13 anti-crime groups planned for tens of thousands of people to join marches in all 32 Mexican states Saturday evening, urging people to walk in silence with candles or lanterns.

Demonstrators hold up candles at the main Zocalo square in Mexico City during a protest against the tide of killings, kidnappings and shootouts sweeping the country, Saturday, Aug. 30, 2008. More than 13 anti-crime groups planned for tens of thousands of people to join marches in all 32 Mexican states Saturday evening, urging people to walk in silence with candles or lanterns.

Hundreds of thousands of frustrated Mexicans, many carrying pictures of kidnapped loved ones, marched across the country Saturday to demand government action against a relentless tide of killings, abductions and shootouts.

The mass candlelight protests were a challenge to the government of President Felipe Calderon, who has made fighting crime a priority and deployed more than 25,000 soldiers and federal police to wrest territory from powerful drug cartels.

Cries of “enough” and “long live Mexico” rose up from sea of white-clad demonstrators filling Mexico City’s enormous Zocalo square. The protesters held candles twinkling in the darkness as they sang the national anthem before dispersing.

“I’ve had enough. Kidnapping, corrupt police, a rotten judicial system,” said Ricardo Robledo, a 43-year-old music producer who said he had been robbed numerous times. “This may begin a change.”

City officials refused to give a crowd estimate, but the Zocalo can hold nearly 100,000 people. Tens of thousands overflowed into the surrounding streets, unable to squeeze into the square. Thousands more protested in cities across the country.

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Aug 09

Sherman Texas Bus Crash - Angel Tours Bus should not have been in operation

By PMC U.S. Trucking News Comments Off
Crews work to move the charter bus off of U.S. Highway 75 near Sherman.

Crews work to move the charter bus off of U.S. Highway 75 near Sherman.

The violations discovered in the bus belonging to Angel Tours that crashed in Sherman Texas Friday morning points to the stupidty and ignorance of a small percentage of people obsessed with ending the Cross Border Pilot Program, which has operated safely for the past 11 months, while ignoring American common carriers who flaunt and ignore the laws and rules thinking it does not apply to them, the bus crash Friday in Sherman Texas that claimed 16 lives is a prime example.

The owner of Angel Tours, 59-year-old Angel de la Torre, should be arrested and detained WITHOUT BAIL and charged with 16 counts of NEGLIGENT HOMICIDE! The idiot bus driver also!

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Jul 06

US Jet Airline cargo plane crashes in Mexico - Pilot dead, co-pilot critical (Updated 2)

By PMC Mexico Today Comments Off

RAMOS ARIZPE,Coahuila, Mexico (MTN) — A plane carrying a load of auto parts crashed Sunday as it was trying to land in northern Mexico, killing the pilot, Lon Macintosh of Middletown Ohio, and severely injuring the co-pilot, Christopher Martin.

The plane crashed before dawn Sunday half a mile (one kilometer) from the runway in Ramos Arizpe, 200 miles (320 kilometers) south of the U.S.-Mexico border, said Segismundo Doguin, the deputy civil defense chief for Coahuila state.

The co-pilot received second- and third-degree burns and was in critical condition at a hospital in the nearby city of Saltillo, Doguin said.

The 1967 McDonnell Douglas DC-9-15 freighter, Tail Number N-199US, was operated by USA Jet Airlines, based in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Company spokesman Donald McNeff said the crew members were U.S. citizens but declined to identify them by name. Mexican officials gave conflicting versions of the names.
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Jul 05

Lucano Bus crashes, 2 dead, 10 injured south of Nuevo Laredo

By PMC Mexico Today Comments Off

Autobuses Lucano coach crashes south of Nuevo LaredoA bus owned by Autobuses Lucano of Dallas Texas, traveling from San Luis Patosi, SLP to Houston Texas crashed 35 miles south of Nuevo Laredo Thursday morning, killing 2, including a pregnant 19 year old woman whose body was found under the bus and injuring 10.

The injured were taken to hospitals in Sabinas Hidalgo NL and Cruz Roja in Nuevo Laredo.

Juan Carlos Flores Sanchez, Commandander of Federal Police Highways, reported initial investigation and interviews with passengers suggested the driver fell asleep at the wheel shortly before the bus left the highway and overturned.

The driver left the scene and a warrant was issued with the Nuevo Leon State Police for his arrest and detention.
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Jun 22

UPDATED: 12 people trampled to death in Mexico nightclub raid

By PMC Mexico Today Comments Off

MEXICO CITY (MTN) — A police raid on a crammed Mexico City nightclub turned into a deadly stampede that killed 12 people, including nine youths and three police, officials said.

Police entered the New Divine nightclub, where around 1,000 people had gathered to fete the end of the school year, on Friday to break up the illegal sale of alcohol to minors and a stampede ensued, said Joel Ortega, a local security official.

“Unfortunately, the person in charge of the nightclub took the microphone and announced a police operation was underway,” Ortega said, adding that his words “sparked a panic.”

People rushed to get out, causing a stampede. Cases of beer were blocking the emergency exit, officials said.

Bodies at entrance to Disco

[/Bodies in the street]Seven youths — three of them young women — and three police died at the scene. An 18-year-old and a 15-year-old succumbed to injuries in the hospital, where around 20 others were rushed for treatment.

“The deaths were attributed to asphyxiation by suffocation,” said public prosecutor Rodolfo Felix.

The raid took place around 6:30 pm (2330 GMT), about an hour and a half after the gathering kicked off.

A ticket to enter the party cost 30 pesos (three dollars), and the two-story, 20 square meter (215 square feet) space quickly filled beyond capacity.

The capital’s main nightly newscast broadcast a brief video that was taken by police at the moment when officers entered the premises.

In the video, a cloud of smoke appears on the dark premises, youths can be heard shouting and a disc jockey says in a calm voice over a loudspeaker: “We are going to evacuate the place, there is a police raid.”

People were continuing to line up outside the club in the hopes of entering as the raid was announced.

Police arrested three nightclub employees, including the DJ, and 39 other people on charges of disturbing the peace. Authorities said there was no exchange of gunfire and denied using tear gas on the crowd.

Abandoned shoes lay scattered outside the entrance to the discotheque, and a group of youths briefly returned to the scene to throw stones at a hundred or so police officers who remained outside.

Asked if police took adequate precautions to avoid the tragedy, Ortega answered: “Many plans are made ahead of time, but a lot depends on the attitude of the people inside and how the group behaves.”
Mexico City Police raid on Club Devine
UPDATED

17 Mexico City Cops fired for participation in raid that killed 12

MEXICO CITY — Police officials on Tuesday fired 17 officers here in connection with a botched raid on a bar last week that triggered a stampede, leaving a dozen people dead.

The firings came as newly released video footage showed police officers blocking exits as hundreds of young patrons tried to flee. The bar’s owners were suspected of serving alcohol to minors.

The incident, at a bar called News Divine in a gritty section of northern Mexico City, has been the talk of the capital for days and spurred a flurry of finger-pointing.

Family members of the deceased have gathered in front of the bar to demand punishment for police and borough officials involved in the raid.

Some politicians have called upon Police Chief Joel Ortega to resign. But he has remained, promising to punish any officers found to have acted improperly.

The city’s popular left-wing mayor, Marcelo Ebrard, denounced the raid in harsh language, vowing a thorough investigation and swift corrective measures. The incident represents the first serious political crisis for Ebrard since he was elected mayor in 2006.

The dead included nine patrons and three of the officers who took part in the operation. Police arrested the owner, Alfonso Maya Ortiz.

The legal drinking age in Mexico is 18.

Hundreds of young revelers, many of them celebrating the end of the school year, were packed inside the 1,100-square-foot bar by the time police arrived late Friday afternoon.

The owner announced the raid over a loudspeaker and asked everyone to leave, promising free entrance the following week. But witnesses said they quickly found themselves trapped amid stifling heat.

“The police told us they were not going to let us leave and closed the doors,” 16-year-old Rebeca Mohzo, told the Televisa network. “Everyone was desperate because there was no air.”

Police videotape of the scene showed pandemonium as patrons were pressed against the exits, many screeching in fear. They were shown fanning themselves in the heat and could be heard pounding on the locked doors.

The footage, broadcast repeatedly Tuesday on television, also showed a tumultuous scene outside the bar as police attempted to revive those who had collapsed, including a police officer.

Separate footage, apparently shot by an onlooker and posted on YouTube, showed helmeted police using their shields to strike some of the escaping patrons.

Mexico media reported that prosecutors were considering charges against the operation commander, Guillermo Zayas. He was fired immediately after the raid.

Among the 17 officers fired Tuesday was one who had been honored previously as officer of the year.

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Jun 02

OOIDA - Good for a laugh on occasion

By PMC Media & Talk Radio Comments Off

I couldn’t help but break out laughing, or as Stevie Sommers puts it, “chuckle”, listening to OOIDA and LandlineNow on XM-171 last Thursday, I think it was, when they brought up the almost dead subject of the Cross Border Program.

I think Mark Reddig was talking with their Washington lobbyist about the status of the program and the comment was made;

All of us at OOIDA are working full time to see this program is stopped in it’s tracks!

Yep, 10 months into the program, and they’re working full time to stop a program that has been successful beyond even what I had imagined.

There have not been the tens of thousand of dangerous and broke down Mexican trucks invading the United States as promised by Joan Claybrook of Public Citizen.

The drayage trucks used within the border commercial zones have not ventured beyond that zone nor have they applied for acceptance into the program by the OP-1MX application process, as Todd Spencer of OOIDA would have you believe.

The trucks participating in the program have done so safely and without apparent accidents and incidents, contrary to what Jimmy Hoffa of the Teamsters would have you believe.

And yes, it appears participation is less than expected. And there could be a reason for that.

Mexican carrier executives are no different from their American and Canadian counterparts. They are in business to make money. If they don’t see the opportunity, they are not going to participate.

Fernando Paez of Transportes Olympics of Apodaca Nuevo Leon is a prime example. He has contracts with RegioMontano Steel of Monterrey to service their customers in the US and to return to Monterrey with raw materials for that customers. This he has done and done so with great success. And has his entry into the US freight market caused any economic hardship on American carriers or depressed the rates? Doubtful! Melton Truck lines hauls the same product and their terminal in Laredo Texas is full of trailer with the same product.

The carrier out of Mexicali, Transportes Rafa, with an account to provide a customer in California’s Central Valley with fruit baskets. How many American carriers are lined up to take this business away from the Rafa Bros.? Not many!

It was said by all the critics that these trucks would be used to transport drugs and illegals into the country and indeed, some of the South Arkansas tin hat crowd suggested nuclear materials for weapons. Guess what! Non of this has happened and won’t!

Sure, there have been stories of trucks being stopped and discovered to have drugs or illegals in them. But it has been proven here and on official government sites that the drugs and illegals come across the border by other means, stockpiled in safe houses until an American trucker, looking for a little quick cash, is stupid enough to accept a load.

Some are suggesting that FMCSA will try to extend the program by a year or two in order to bolster the statistics. Personally, I would think a year without accident or incident, coupled with the Mexican governments own safety statistics (yes, they do have databases) would be enough to prove the opposition to the program is a moot point.

And keeping in mind, after a successful year of the program, and I measure success by the no accident or incident statistics, it is going to be extremely difficult to justify pulling the plug on the program.

The big myth in all of this is that the Mexican carriers can operate cheaper and therefore undercut US rates which is not the case. Sure, they pay their drivers a little less than US carriers, but they also pay those drivers a per diem, cover their Social Security payments and have other perks that go with the job.

And when you consider the additional expenses required to enter into the program, obtain US operating authority, the high cost of US insurance, their costs of operations are equal to or slightly more than ours.

It’s all good business and those that would ignore that fact are the foolish ones. But we all know that OOIDA and others will continue to throw around false information and we will be here to debunk the myths with facts backed up by photos. That has been the success of Mexico Trucker.

Not to think I am totally down on OOIDA. They have apparently done some good fighting the new CARB restrictions in California. Their support of the TRUCC acts moving through Congress at the moment is a good thing for all the good they will do any of us. It is a panacea to a problem with roots deeper than these bills address. But on the issue of Mexican trucks, they are dead wrong and continually prove this by throwing out all the exaggerated misinformation.

We’ll all sit back and wait, but in my mind, we have much more important things to worry about at the moment.

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