4 U.S. citizens kidnapped by gunmen in Mexico during trip to buy medicine: officials

The four came under fire on Friday shortly after entering the Mexican city of Matamoros from Texas, U.S. and Mexican officials said, and were thrown into a vehicle by the gunmen.

Gunmen kidnapped four U.S. citizens who crossed into Mexico from Texas last week to buy medicine but were caught in a shootout that killed at least one Mexican citizen, U.S. and Mexican officials said Monday.

The four were in a white minivan with North Carolina license plates. They came under fire on Friday shortly after entering the city of Matamoros from Brownsville, the southernmost tip of Texas near the Gulf coast, the FBI San Antonio Division office said in a statement Sunday.

“All four Americans were placed in a vehicle and taken from the scene by armed men,” the office said. The FBI is offering a $50,000 reward for the victims’ return and the arrest of the kidnappers.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Monday the four were going to buy medicine, “there was a confrontation between groups, and they were detained,” without offering details.

A woman driving in Matamoros saw what appeared to be the shooting and abduction. She asked not to be identified for fear of reprisal.

The scene illustrates the terror that has prevailed for years in Matamoros, a city dominated by factions of the Gulf cartel who often fight among themselves. Amid the violence, thousands of Mexicans have disappeared just in Tamaulipas state, where Matamoros is located.

The woman said she saw the white minivan get hit by another vehicle near an intersection, then gunfire rang out.

Another SUV rolled up and several armed men hopped out.