Nuevo Laredo Police Force Gutted (UPDATED)

(Nuevo Laredo, Mexico) According to Nuevo Laredo Mayor Daniel Pena, nearly 80 police officers have been fired after failing a screening process that considered factors such as absenteeism and testing for drugs. The internal review follows a contentious June 11 takeover of the city's police department by Mexican soldiers and federal agents due to alleged corruption and the murder of a newly-appointed police chief only hours after taking office. An actual shootout occurred on city streets between Nuevo Laredo Police and federal agents.

City spokesman Alberto Rodriguez stated that an additional 70 police officers may be dismissed by week's end. The total number of police fired is expected to be about 20 percent of entire force of 700. In addition to the firings, officers have been pulled off of street patrol since last week, leaving law enforcement to the Mexican Army and federal police officers. There's a sense of lawlessness and chaos on the city streets.

As a result of decreased city police presence, there's been an upswing in wanton broad-daylight violence by some criminal elements. On Friday, 22-year-old Filiberto Pena Berlanga was gunned down while driving a vehicle with Texas plates in front of city hall and just a block away from police headquarters. Three others were wounded in the gunfire which left Berlanga with several shots to the head.

On the Texas side of the Rio Grande River, Gov. Rick Perry responded to a request from Laredo Mayor Betty Flores and sent additional Texas Department of Public Safety Troopers to the Laredo area to combat the threat of Mexican violence spilling over the border. Also, federal grant money is expected to be made available for an emergency communications system soon. U.S. Customs and the Border Patrol are monitoring the escalating violence closely and will deploy additional resources if necessary.

Although the shakeup of the Nuevo Laredo Police Department is a step in the right direction, the power and influence of the Mexican drug gangs have not been directly challenged. It's expected that there will be continued violence until an uncorrupted law enforcement effort is mobilized to weaken the authority of the drug kingpins.

[Update 6/28/05] The crackdown on crime and corruption in Nuevo Laredo by Mexican soldiers and federal agents continues with a series of raids rescuing dozens of kidnap victims on Sunday.

From KRISTV.com:

The 44 people freed Sunday - including many found with their eyes covered with tape - told authorities they were kidnapped by police officers in Nuevo Laredo, a city of 350,000 across from Laredo, Texas, or by members of the Zetas, a gang led by former soldiers who became drug hit men and are blamed for a rash of killings and violence along the Mexico-U.S. border, said Deputy Public Safety Secretary Rafael Rios.

Some of the victims had been held up to three months, at least one had been tortured and was taken to a hospital. None of those rescued had been reported missing or was the subject of a ransom demand, Rios told a news conference in Mexico City.

Deputy Attorney General Gilberto Higuera said those rescued were apparently "involved in criminal activities and were not victims of kidnappings" for ransom. [emphasis mine]

The raids encompassed three safe houses and were prompted by a tip from a suspect taken into custody. It's believed that some of the kidnapped victims worked for a rival drug gang.