Juarez Killings: Americans Murdered In 'One Of Most Violent Places On Earth'

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Juarez Killings: Americans Murdered In 'One Of Most Violent Places On Earth'
7:15 am

March 15, 2010

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Caught in the deadly drug war. (Jesus Alcazar/AFP/Getty Images)
By Mark Memmott

Outrage is the word of the day as reactions build to the killings Saturday in Juarez, Mexico, of three people with ties to the American consulate there.

As The El Paso Times reports:

"The victims were identified as Lesley A. Enriquez, 25, who worked for the consulate and was four-months pregnant, her husband, Arthur H. Redelfs, 30, a detention officer for the El Paso County Sheriff's Office, and Jorge Alberto Salcido Ceniceros, 37, whose wife also worked for the consulate."

The couple were gunned down in a car as they tried to elude their attackers; their baby girl in the back seat was unharmed. Salcido was also attacked in a vehicle and also had children with him. His 4- and 7-year-old children suffered "unspecified injuries," the Times reports.

The Associated Press writes that "President Obama expressed outrage over the killings, and Mexican President Felipe Calderon promised a swift investigation."

It's presumed at this time that the killings are linked to the incredibly violent drug war underway in Juarez. As NPR's Jason Beaubien reported today on Morning Edition, the city is now "one of the most violent places on earth." Jason adds that:

"Kidnapping and extortion are so common that the government runs public service announcements on the radio about how to not be a victim. Executions occur in broad daylight. And teenage girls continue to disappear without a trace."

Here is Jason's report, which focuses on the search for justice by grieving mothers in Juarez: http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1GqNVv/www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/03/juarez_killings_americans.html?ft=1&f=103943429/r:t


See also: Cartel Hit Men Blamed For Latest Juarez Slayings

Mexican authorities were investigating the murders of two U.S. citizens and a Mexican man who were ambushed in two separate incidents Saturday after attending a party thrown by a U.S. consulate employee.

Authorities suspect that hit men from the Juarez Cartel were responsible for the killings in a city already famous as one of the world's most violent. According to Juarez-based El Diario newspaper, 50 people were killed there over the weekend.

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1oI4mE/www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124687254&ft=1&f=1001/r:t