A federal prosecutor in Mexico was killed in a drive-by shooting that shocked the country after video footage of the attack was circulated online.
The footage shows a prosecutor sitting on the road in the border city of Reinosa, Tamaulipas province, shortly after his car set fire to it. The white vehicle then drives the past, with multiple gunshots coming through. The prosecutor fell to the ground and then remained unmoved. It is not clear what caused the fire.
The Mexican Attorney General’s Office has identified the murdered man as Ernesto Quitlack Vasquez Reina, who worked in Tamaulipas.
Although Monday’s attacks were still under investigation, preliminary information suggested it could be linked to an organized crime gang targeted by authorities recently.
It pointed to a seizure by security forces last month of more than 1.8 million litres of stolen fuel.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Tuesday that her security cabinet would contact state and federal prosecutors and “do justice in this case.”
In a post on X, Governor Tamaulipas, Americo Villarreal, condemned the attack, expressed solidarity with the prosecutor’s family, offering to help “the Attorney General’s office and the Mexican government seek to build justice and peace.”
Reinosa is the most populous city in Tamaulipas, with around 700,000 residents. It is located across from Rio Grande from Hidalgo, Texas.
