Head of Gulf Cartel killed
Mexican authorities confirmed that Ezequiel “Tony Tormenta” Cardenas Guillen—one of the two leaders of the Gulf Cartel and a pivotal figure in recent border drug wars—was killed in a shootout in Matamoros Friday.
Violence across the city throughout the day left at least 47 others dead, including a reporter for a Matamoros newspaper, sources with knowledge of the situation said.
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Ezequiel Cardenas Guillen is the brother of Osiel Cardenas Guillen, who formerly was the head of the Gulf Cartel; he was caught in Matamoros in 2003, extradited to the U.S. and convicted of drug trafficking.Sources said that all the gunfire across Matamoros Friday appeared to be related to the search for and encounter with Cardenas Guillen.
The fighting reportedly involved members of the Gulf Cartel, the Zetas and Mexican federal police and military.
The violence caused the closure of all three bridges between Brownsville and Mexico, but they had reopened by Friday evening.
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