Four agents from Mexico and the United States died in a car accident after carrying out an operation against drug labs in Chihuahua; so far, it has not been established whether the crash was related to the cause of death.
The Mexican agents who died are:
Pedro Román Oseguera Cervantes, coordinator of the Chihuahua State Investigation Agency
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Manuel Genaro Méndez Montes, agent of the Chihuahua State Investigation Agency
Neither U.S. nor local authorities have released the names of the American agents who also died in the mission; they have only stated that they were engaged in “training duties.”
Chihuahua Attorney General César Jáuregui said in a press conference that the agents were traveling in a convoy of seven vehicles, but one of them skidded near the town of Polanco, in the municipality of Morelos.
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“It fell into a 200-meter ravine and exploded, according to the report. Three occupants were ejected from the vehicle and another burned inside,” the attorney general said.
Map: Where did the accident occur in which Mexican and U.S. agents died in Chihuahua?
The operation was carried out in the mountains between Morelos and Guachochi, in Chihuahua.
What Mexican and U.S. agents seized in Chihuahua
At a first camp and laboratory—an open area of approximately 850 square meters, divided into five sections—the following was found:
- 19 drums of 1,000 liters
- 2 boilers and pallets with sacks labeled “Tquisa”
- 17 containers of 1,000 liters
- 2 water containers
- 14 containers with acetone
- 14 containers with a white substance
- 16 containers with a black-colored material
- 15 ovens
- 7 tanks connected to the ovens by hoses
- 10 small tanks
- 61 connected gas cylinders
- 42 gas cylinders
- 4 tanks with a black material
- Sacks with white material without labels
- 33 additional 1,000-liter containers
At the second camp-laboratory, in an open area of approximately 40 meters, the following was found:
- 1 storage of sacks with a white material
- 2 condensers
- 2 boilers
- 6 containers of 1,000 liters
- 5 buckets with liquid material
Context: During her Monday, April 20 morning press conference at the National Palace, President Claudia Sheinbaum expressed her condolences for the events in Chihuahua, where an agent died, and said the federal government had not been aware of the operation, noting that it was a decision by the Chihuahua state government.
She indicated that there is already contact with the U.S. Embassy and that direct coordination with its personnel will be established, while authorities also review whether any violation of international law occurred.
For his part, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, Ronald Johnson, expressed his condolences for the deaths of two members of the U.S. Embassy staff, as well as the director of the Chihuahua State Investigation Agency and an agent from the same agency.
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