Mexico’s government said Saturday that two U.S. citizens acting in the country as intelligence operatives were not authorized to conduct operations on Mexican soil. The men were killed on April 19 in the northern state of Chihuahua in an incident connected to a drug raid; two Mexican officials also died.
Authorities said the group — a multi-vehicle convoy that included soldiers and personnel from the Chihuahua State Investigation Agency — was returning from a raid on clandestine drug laboratories when their vehicle skidded off the road and plunged into a ravine. Mexican officials described the U.S. personnel as “instructor officers” who were carrying out training duties.
Mexico’s Security Ministry reported that immigration records show one of the U.S. citizens entered as a visitor while the other used a diplomatic passport. The ministry noted Mexican law prohibits foreign agents from participating in operations on national territory and said, “Neither had formal accreditation to participate in operational activities within national territory.” The two U.S. citizens have not been publicly identified; the U.S. ambassador in Mexico has said they were employees of the U.S. embassy.
Cooperation between U.S. law enforcement and Mexican security forces has long been politically sensitive and is relatively uncommon. The incident comes as President Claudia Sheinbaum faces pressure from Washington to adopt a tougher approach against drug trafficking organizations.