National Guardsman kills 3 fellow service members hours after car bomb kills 5 in cartel stronghold in Mexico
Members of the Mexican National Guard shot dead three more soldiers at a barracks over the weekend in Mexico’s western state of Michoacan, where the government has beefed up its security forces following recent high-profile killings.
A federal official confirmed the shooting to The Associated Press on Monday, requesting anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly. The shooting, which injured a fourth soldier, remains under investigation, the official said.
The suspect was in custody in Michoacán.
The shooting occurred Saturday hours after a car bomb exploded in Coahuayana, Michoacan, killing five people in front of a local police station. According to Héctor Zepeda, community police commander, the explosion was so powerful that human remains were scattered throughout the area.
President Claudia Sheinbaum declined to provide further details on Monday.
The explosion and National Guard shooting came as the federal government has stepped up its security activities in the state, sending additional troops after two recent high-profile killings.
Last month, Sheinbaum sent 2,000 troops – in addition to 4,300 permanent troops and 4,000 in neighboring states – to Michoacán following the assassination of a outspoken representative lime producers and a popular mayor stand up to the cartels. THE assassination of the mayor of Uruapan, Carlos Manzo sparked two days of youth-led protests in November, during which demonstrators set fire to public buildings and clashed with police, leaving more than 100 people injured.
Eduardo Verdugo / AP 
At least three of six drug cartels targeted by the Trump administration designated as terrorist organizations – Jalisco New Generation, United Cartels and The New Michoacan Family – operate in Michoacan, in addition to a large number of local armed dissident groups, some supported by the Sinaloa Cartel.
For two decades, various organized crime groups have been fighting for control of the territory because Michoacan is a gateway for chemical precursors used in the manufacture of synthetic drugs.
