A group of Gulf Cartel gunmen in Tamaulipas dropped several ice chests with human body parts in a popular shopping center parking lot just a short distance south of the border with Texas. The gory discovery took place in the same parking lot where Gulf Cartel gunmen released a group of 32 migrants that they kidnapped days prior.
The incident occurred on Sunday afternoon in Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas, just south of Donna, Texas. Tamaulipas state officials tried to cover up the issue and waited as long as they could until they had to confirm the discovery. Under the leadership of Tamaulipas Governor Americo Villarreal, state officials, particularly his spokesman Jorge Cuellar Montoya, have worked to hide cases of cartel violence and minimize violent crimes as a way to claim the region is safe.
#VoceríaInforma
— Vocería de Seguridad Tamaulipas (@VoceriaSegTamps) January 8, 2024
El día de ayer, se reportó en Río Bravo la visualización de masculinos armados abordo de un vehículo, los cuales abandonaron una bolsa negra y hielera, en el estacionamiento de “Soriana”, al parecer con restos humanos…
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At the scene, authorities found an ice chest with a torso and several other human remains inside. Next to the ice chest, the gunmen left a posterboard with various cartel threats. Authorities refused to disclose the contents of the messages. While the victims have not been identified, authorities believe that the body parts of more than one victim could be found. Officias believe discoveries of similar crime scenes could be possible.
The discovery took place in the parking lot of a popular shopping center in Rio Bravo, where on January 3, a group of gunmen released 32 migrants that they kidnapped on December 30. As Breitbart Texas reported, the Gulf Cartel was able to deploy several vehicles to stop a passenger bus traveling from Reynosa to Matamoros and kidnap 32 migrants. Federal and military forces did nothing to stop the kidnapping, nor were they able to locate the victims in the days after.
It remains unclear if the body parts left in the ice chest are tied to the migrant kidnapping or if they are tied to some sort of infighting within the Gulf Cartel.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at
“J.C. Sanchez, Francisco Morales, and J.A. Espinoza” contributed to this report.
