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ACAPULCO, Mexico – Gunmen kidnapped 22 men who were traveling together in Mexico's Pacific coast resort city of Acapulco, authorities said Saturday.

The group was visiting from the western city of Morelia and looking for a place to stay when they were abducted Thursday, said Fernando Monreal, director of state investigative police in Guerrero state, where Acapulco is located.

The kidnapping was reported by a man who had been with the group, Monreal said. He said that the man told police he left the others to go to a store and when he returned his companions were gone.

Witnesses said his companions — who ranged in age from 17 to 47 — were kidnapped by an armed gang that drove them away in the three cars in which the group had been traveling.

The motive was unknown.

The man who notified police described his companions as tourists.

Acapulco has been a key battleground for lucrative drug-trafficking routes. Violence in the region increased this year after a split in the Beltran Leyva cartel, whose leadership has been hit hard by President Felipe Calderon's drug war.

Police, who were scouring the resort cities and the highways leading out of it for the missing men, gave no indication that they were tied to drug trafficking.

Drug-gang henchmen frequently kidnap rivals and dump their bodies on the streets days later. But it is rare for a survivor of such kidnappings to go to the police.


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WOW

OK, let's see if I get this............

22 single men (ages 17 to 47, without families) traveling together, supposedly tourists (22 single men as tourists????) from Morelia, in Acapulco looking for a place to stay (apparently the tour guide or travel agency in Morelia failed to make hotel/motel reservations in Acapulco), were kidnapped by an armed gang ....kidnapped from an unknown location (city park, local Wal-Mart, possibly Appleby's).....driven off in three vehicles......and this is reported by a 22 year old who went to the store by himself?????.............uh, something smells about this story........

Whatever the motive or the real affiliation of the 22 men, this is just more bad news for Acapulco that is becoming the new Tijuana for Mexico's narco violence.

Originally Posted by Teniente

OK, let's see if I get this............

22 single men (ages 17 to 47, without families) traveling together, supposedly tourists (22 single men as tourists????) from Morelia, in Acapulco looking for a place to stay (apparently the tour guide or travel agency in Morelia failed to make hotel/motel reservations in Acapulco), were kidnapped by an armed gang ....kidnapped from an unknown location (city park, local Wal-Mart, possibly Appleby's).....driven off in three vehicles......and this is reported by a 22 year old who went to the store by himself?????.............uh, something smells about this story........

I don't know. The story says the men saved every year to take a vacation together. They worked in a tire shop together- so it wasn't kidnapping for ransom. I've never known a Mexican to use a travel agent within Mexico. Maybe years ago they figured out the "walk up" hotel room rates were better. If they were narcos and only took one trip a year for that business- they were underachievers- even by Mexican standards.

Originally Posted by Teniente

possibly Appleby's.

Probably not. Appleby's couldn't entice 22 people into the place at the same time.

I think we should take a poll:

Random/tourists with no connection to traffickers...or not?

Strident voices who say that question is "covering up/rationalizing" bad news

somehow fail to note THAT is the entire premise of the article: DANGER for RANDOM TOURISTS;

Is. It. Not???

If you really insist that is NOT the case, ask yourself how noteworthy "Big Gang Of Narcos Kidnap Another" would play in Global Press.



HOWEVER, a very-good point raised elsewhere:

"...If they were narcos, not tourists- they would have had guns ready..."

I do not think I know JACK. I'm raising a question and would like to see it answered.

It is really hard to say. The article offers little information to help draw any conclusions. The only facts we have are that 22 guys were traveling together from Morelia to Acapulco in three vehicles, looking for a place to stay.

To some it may seem strange that a large group of guys would travel together without having a reservation ahead of time but like Wooosh says, they aren't all into the idea of strict itinerary's down here.

If they were narcos, you would think that at least one of them would have had a weapon to fight back - no report of gunshots in the article.

Random tourist kidnapping? That sounds hard to believe as well. Taking 22 guys is no easy task and to manage that big number of guys would mean pre-planning and logistics.

Obviously there is more to the story but I am holding my vote until we know more...

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

It is really hard to say. The article offers little information to help draw any conclusions. The only facts we have are that 22 guys were traveling together from Morelia to Acapulco in three vehicles, looking for a place to stay.

To some it may seem strange that a large group of guys would travel together without having a reservation ahead of time but like Wooosh says, they aren't all into the idea of strict itinerary's down here.

If they were narcos, you would think that at least one of them would have had a weapon to fight back - no report of gunshots in the article.

Random tourist kidnapping? That sounds hard to believe as well. Taking 22 guys is no easy task and to manage that big number of guys would mean pre-planning and logistics.

Obviously there is more to the story but I am holding my vote until we know more...

also: With all the talk of media bias- I was also surprised the word "Tourists" was used by the Mexican government source... nless I read that wrong. Then again, the media has caved in to the narcos after the direct violence against them and they now get editing rights.

Originally Posted by Woooosh

also: With all the talk of media bias- I was also surprised the word "Tourists" was used by the Mexican government source... nless I read that wrong. Then again, the media has caved in to the narcos after the direct violence against them and they now get editing rights.

That is a very good point. Perhaps the press in general is just tired of putting up their ranks as lambs to the slaughter. Something tells me we are witnessing a change in media strategy mirroring an evolving public opinion shift going on. More and more down here would just like to see things go back to the way things were before when government turned a blind eye with an outreached hand behind their back. They see no end in sight to this fight as long as the demand exists north of the border. "Let the USA fight this battle on their own soil", is a comment I have heard often of late...

Speaking of the press:



So here's a guy who fled with his family; after receiving info and intimidation originating from military involvement in narco-violence.

I heartily suspect that the big picture behind the last 5 years has been the upset of traditional government sponsorship of certain plazas.

Resulting in all-out war waged by all the gangs left out in the cold...

against the 1 who isn't.

Maybe I'm just paranoid and governments/politicians are basically honest, altruistic servants of the greater good. We really do wage a sincere war on drugs...poverty...




At least kiss me first before; wouldja?

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

That is a very good point. Perhaps the press in general is just tired of putting up their ranks as lambs to the slaughter. Something tells me we are witnessing a change in media strategy mirroring an evolving public opinion shift going on. More and more down here would just like to see things go back to the way things were before when government turned a blind eye with an outreached hand behind their back. They see no end in sight to this fight as long as the demand exists north of the border. "Let the USA fight this battle on their own soil", is a comment I have heard often of late...

Yep, used to be that only ones that got hurt, were NOB.... from using the materials shipped up across the border.... not to say, there were never "turf wars".. between the Mexican Mafia and others.. over the past 50 years.. or more... aaaaahhhhh what is the name of the ravine on the "Fence Road" .... something like "Smugglers Gulch"......

Have heard the same thinking from folks down here too...

A tire shop that employs 22 + guys has to be a pretty good size operation. You'd think that by now some reporter would have interviewed the owner of the tire shop about the loss.

I believe that I read somewhere that he was with the group...

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

I believe that I read somewhere that he was with the group...

The Fulano Files has the correct, current info posted on this. I'm glad you kept an open mind to the possibility these guys were just innocent victims, although not great vacation planners, because that's what it now looks like. It's kind of sad just three of us- out of all the posters from Baja boards and Blogs, could see the narco angle was too flawed to be so readily accepted.

Originally Posted by Woooosh

The Fulano Files has the correct, current info posted on this. I'm glad you kept an open mind to the possibility these guys were just innocent victims, although not great vacation planners, because that's what it now looks like. It's kind of sad just three of us- out of all the posters from Baja boards and Blogs, could see the narco angle was too flawed to be so readily accepted.

Make it four. I posted this yesterday on BN:

"Twenty Two enemy combatants wandering around behind the lines looking for a place to hang out?
Total BS."

Originally Posted by Woooosh

The Fulano Files has the correct, current info posted on this. I'm glad you kept an open mind to the possibility these guys were just innocent victims, although not great vacation planners, because that's what it now looks like. It's kind of sad just three of us- out of all the posters from Baja boards and Blogs, could see the narco angle was too flawed to be so readily accepted.

So fulano and I agree on something.

Noticias Milenio had a pretty good report on it on satellite last night and they seem to reflect the sentiments of most that something is really weird about this case. It may seem odd that 22 guys are traveling together with no hotel reservation but it would be the first time (that I know of at least) that a large group of narcos get taken by a rival gang without so much as a single gunshot. If any of those kidnapped had any criminal past you would think we would have heard something by now. The early reports make them all out to be hard workers / family men.

Something has to give in this story...

Originally Posted by DENNIS

Make it four. I posted this yesterday on BN:

"Twenty Two enemy combatants wandering around behind the lines looking for a place to hang out?
Total BS."

Thanks Dennis. Four... plus Fulano, Five. I think the Michoacan license plates on four cars full of single men got the locals talking and things rolled quickly out of control. With so much violence in that area- Dennis calling it "enemy lines" is right on target. The group probably felt they were safer caravaning together when it actually was much worse from a war-zone perspective.

Like I wondered out loud- I would hate to see what Nomads would post about me if something bad ever were to happen to my family.

This was an article I read earlier this morning and gives a more complete story of what happened and background of those taken...

Familiares, sin noticia de turistas secuestrados en Acapulco

Something else that made me seriously doubt that these guys are involved in organized crime are the vehicles they were driving. They were not traveling in late model SUV's. Here is a summary of their caravan:

2002 VW Pointer
2003 VW Jetta
1996 Dodge Voyager
1998 Ford Windstar

Sounds more like vehicles you would see driving kids to soccer practice.

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