A 7-year-old American-born girl, identified as Aranza, was killed on Oct. 29 when Mexican police fired from a helicopter during a pursuit of a Gulf Cartel leader. The incident occurred in Matamoros, a city on the border with Brownsville, Texas, according to CBS News.
Aranza's family was traveling in a vehicle when they encountered blockades set up by armed individuals following the capture of a local gang member. Her mother reported that a police helicopter began following their car. When her husband stopped the vehicle to inform authorities they were civilians with children, police opened fire, striking Aranza in the head. The girl's mother stated she attempted to shield her children, all under the age of 14, with her body.
The Tamaulipas state prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation into the police-involved shooting. Authorities stated that officers were responding to an attack they faced from the ground during the road blockades. The officers who discharged their firearms have not been detained, but the investigation is reportedly making progress.
The target of the operation was identified as Alfredo Cárdenas Rodríguez, also known as Axel, a suspected high-ranking member of the Ciclones group within the Gulf Cartel. Mexico’s Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch stated that Cárdenas Rodríguez has been linked to homicides, kidnappings, extortion, and drug, weapons, and human trafficking into the United States.