EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – Police in the Mexican state of Chihuahua say they have solid leads in the recent murders of U.S. citizens in the border cities of Juarez and Ojinaga.
One of them was 20-year-old Alan Valenzuela, of Presidio, Texas.
“Alan and his friends were visiting an establishment in Ojinaga, Mexico, just across the border when he was tragically struck by random gunfire,” the Presidio County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. “He was innocently spending time in a town that many Presidio residents and tourists frequent. This senseless act leaves many unanswered questions about how and why this tragedy occurred.”
On Monday, Chihuahua Public Safety Director Gilberto Loya said several members of a criminal cell arrested on Sunday on drug and weapons charges are under investigation in connection with the July 6 shooting that struck down the American.
The arrests of the Los Cabrera gang members, including one of their leaders, prompted police to ramp up patrols in Ojinaga across from Presidio, Texas, and around the Chihuahua City prison where they are being held.
“These people have generated violence in the towns of Aldama, Ojinaga and Coyame,” Loya said on Monday. “We were paying attention with patrols in that region to prevent a surprise or that they would try to come down here and attempt to liberate them.”
Sinaloa cartel cells and their rival La Linea in the past five years have been fighting for control of drug and migrant smuggling routes south of Presidio. Their feud reportedly led to the disappearance and presumed death of 13 migrants in the fall of 2021. The presumed remains of the migrants were found in a mass grave in 2023.
On July 22 in Juarez, the Chihuahua Attorney General’s Office reported finding the remains of a young woman in a home on Moncayo street in the Urbi Villa del Cedro neighborhood.
The find of the body buried 2 feet under the ground stemmed from a kidnapping investigation, the Attorney General’s Office said in a statement. The victim was between 15 and 20 years old, of “robust build,” had tattoos and a belly ring.
State investigators told Border Report news partner ProVideo they believe the victim was a 17-year-old from a community in New Mexico who came to reside in Juarez and was kidnapped by a criminal gang.
“Regarding the regrettable homicide of this young lady of American origin, we are working closely with the Attorney General’s Office, which is in charge of kidnappings,” Loya said on Monday. “This case is still open, under investigation and even though we have important information, I wouldn’t want to divulge it because we are still investigating.”
The July 22 report does not name the teenaged victim. Mexican news media have identified her as D.C.L.G. of Hobbs, N.M.
Border Report reached out to the Lea County Sheriff’s Office for information on the case but was referred to the Hobbs Police Department. Border Report left a message on an answering machine and is waiting for a response.
Loya said organized criminals in Juarez targeted migrants for kidnapping during surges in the past few years. However, since traffic waned after President Trump came into office, the gangs are now targeting people in Juarez.
“In May and June, this crime morphed against people who are not migrants,” Loya said. “But let me tell you in most, in all cases, there were arrests, which brought down the number of kidnappings to zero” prior to the American girl’s case.
Read: Read More