Mexico: Cartel kills 13 cops, judicial agents in ambush
17:31, 19/03/2021, FridayU: Update: 17:32, 19/03/2021, Friday
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Security minister says attackers were from an 'organized crime group,' vows to respond with 'all force, support of law'
At least 13 law enforcement officials were killed after gunmen ambushed a convoy southeast of Mexico’s capital, authorities said on Thursday.
Eight police officers and five prosecution investigators were gunned down by an “organized crime group in the Llano Grande area,” officials of the Security Ministry and the State Attorney General’s Office said in a news conference.
The gruesome incident took place in the municipality of Coatepec Harinas, 125km (78 miles) south-west of Mexico City in Mexico state on Thursday afternoon, according to officials.
Security Minister Rodrigo Martinez Celis vowed to respond with “all the force and support of the law,” terming the ambush an affront to Mexico.
He said air and land operations were being carried out with the support of military forces to locate the attackers’ whereabouts.
In 2020, at least 524 Mexican police officers were killed, according to anti-crime NGO Causa en Comun.