Tamaulipas government downplays anti-cartel violence amid escalating turf wars

In the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas, government officials have been accused of downplaying the severity of cartel violence through manipulated crime statistics and misleading public statements. While officials attempt to present an image of peace, the reality is very different. Fierce turf wars between rival drug cartels have led to an increase in violence, with convoys of gunmen in armored vehicles terrorizing cities such as Reynosa, Rio Bravo, San Fernando and Abasolo.

The recent surge in violence has been met with a disturbing silence from mainstream news outlets, which have been pressured by government officials and threatened by the cartels themselves. This information void has left residents with little choice but to turn to social media for news of high-impact crimes, including kidnappings, extortions, carjackings, and deadly shootings.

Despite the escalating violence, the Tamaulipas government continues to push a narrative of security. Officials regularly post on social media about days without reported murders or other serious crimes, but these claims crumble under scrutiny. The gap between the official narrative and lived reality is clear, especially when these statements are compared to the frequent reports of violence shared by local residents on social media.

In a disturbing development, the Tamaulipas government has even dismissed travel warnings from the U.S. consulate in Matamoros. The warnings raised the risk of kidnappings for ransom targeting U.S. citizens, but local officials dismissed the warnings as unfounded, saying they were not supported by official statistics.

This week, violence reached new heights when gunmen set fire to two trailers loaded with clothing in San Fernando after the owners refused to pay protection fees. In other areas, cartels have levied taxes on the sale of private vehicles, threatening, kidnapping and even killing those who break the rules. The Tamaulipas government has tried to cover up these incidents by falsely labeling them as traffic accidents.