Most of small Mexican town’s police force quits in fear after gunmen ambush fellow officers

Mexican town’s police force quits after ambush

MEXICO CITY — Most of a small Mexican town’s police force has quit after armed men ambushed and wounded two of their officers.

The resignation of six of the 11 municipal officers in La Union Monday evening comes after several other Mexican towns have seen mass police resignations because of cartel violence or threats.

State police in Guerrero, which La Union is located, said Tuesday that it has deployed 20 of its officers to patrol La Union until further notice.

The resignations came two days after their colleagues were ambushed and left La Union’s police force with five members: the chief, the deputy chief, an officer in charge of weapons logistics and the two wounded officers who are hospitalized.

Meanwhile, people in some Mexican towns have begun taking the law into their own hands.

In Mexico State, on the outskirts of Mexico City, authorities said Tuesday that residents of a town beat a man death on suspicion of robbing a young couple of 200 pesos (about $16) and a cell phone Monday.

The suspect and an accomplice allegedly held up the couple with a knife and what later was found to be a toy gun.

About 300 people pursued the two men, caught one and beat him so badly with sticks and fists that he died in an ambulance, officials said.

Also Tuesday, the federal police announced the capture of an alleged member of the La Linea gang in the border city of Ciudad Juarez who allegedly participated in the killing of 10 people.

Juan Padilla Juarez, 28, allegedly targeted rivals of the La Linea gang, which is allied with the Juarez drug cartel. He was captured Monday in Ciudad Juarez.

The Attorney General’s Office announced that a judge handed down a prison sentence of almost 22 years against Jaime Gonzalez Duran, also known as “The Hummer,” for money laundering and weapons possession. He had previously been sentenced to 16½ years on similar charges by another court. The sentences will not be served concurrently.

Gonzalez Duran is an army deserter who was arrested in the northern border city of Reynosa. He is allegedly one of the founding members of the Zetas, a band of cartel hit men believed responsible for massacres and beheadings.