The United States consulate in Nuevo Laredo suspended its services in the face of the violence that has recently broken out in the region after the capture of Juan Gerardo Treviño, alias “El Huevo”, during which the headquarters was hit with grenades.
“The Nuevo Laredo consulate will not offer routine consular services to the public until further notice,” Deanna Kim, US consul in this city in the state of Tamaulipas, which borders the United States, told the press.
Kim added that the offices will remain open for emergencies only.
According to the diplomat, during the early hours of last Monday the consulate “received shots and was hit by grenades apparently (thrown) by members of a criminal organization.”
“Out of an abundance of caution, the Department of State has authorized the departure of non-emergency personnel and their families,” he said.
On the afternoon of this Thursday, the US authorities issued an alert for the employees of the consulate in Nuevo Laredo to seek refuge because they received threats.
Based on recent law enforcement information, all US government employees in Nuevo Laredo have been instructed to shelter in place. All US citizens should seek secure shelter immediately. pic.twitter.com/v2cKdkTmVR
— USCG Nvo Laredo (@USAConNVL)
March 17, 2022
The US consulate later posted on its Twitter account that the threat was found to be “not credible.”
“Late in the afternoon, United States law enforcement received information regarding threats against the consulate. Out of an abundance of caution, the consulate has gone into a shelter-in-place status. This threat has been determined NOT CREDIBLE.”
SECURITY ALERT-FALSE THREAT
Late in the afternoon US Law Enforcement received threat information against the US Consulate. Out of an abundance of caution, the Consulate moved to a shelter-in-place status. After further investigation, this threat was determined to be NOT CREDIBLE
— USCG Nvo Laredo (@USAConNVL)
March 18, 2022
The capture of the leader of the Northeast Cartel, Juan Gerardo Treviño, unleashed intense shootings, roadblocks and burning of vehicles early Monday morning that lasted until early Monday morning.
Treviño, alias the “Egg”, was deported to the United States, as he had dual Mexican and American nationality.
The aforementioned capo will have to face charges in the United States for drug trafficking and money laundering; in Mexico he has accusations of homicide and terrorism, according to the Secretary of National Defense.
He is the nephew of detainee Miguel Ángel Treviño (alias “Z-40”), considered the last leader of Los Zetas, an organization that emerged from the Gulf Cartel (the oldest in Mexico), made up of military deserters and that was characterized by its practices bloodthirsty
A brother of the “Egg”, Juan Francisco Treviño, is serving a life sentence in the United States.
Mexico is immersed in a spiral of violence that has left some 340,000 dead -mostly attributed to actions of organized crime- since 2006 when a military anti-drug offensive was deployed.
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