“El Huaso” for Borderland Beat
Ten National Guard agents were injured in a car bomb attack in the city of Celaya, Guanajuato last night. This is the latest attack in a wave of violence against police in Guanajuato, the most deadly state for security forces in Mexico.
This bomb attack occurred around 10:30 PM on June 28 in the Sauz de Villaseñor neighborhood in southern Celaya, just off the highway exit to Salvatierra.
According to La Silla Rota, National Guard agents were patrolling in the area when they noticed an abandoned sedan. When the agents opened the door, an explosive device detonated, injuring ten of them. The agents were instantly thrown back by the blast as the car was incinerated in flames.
The injured agents were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. According to Periodico Correo, three are severely injured and seven have mild injuries. Photos of the severely wounded men in the hospital show missing limbs and deep lacerations.
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| The scene of the attack one day later. |
In the first attack, just before noon on June 27th, gunmen killed Maria Soledad “N”, a Municipal Police officer at a CIJ, a youth criminal rehabilitation center in Celaya.
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That evening, gunmen shot into a crowd at a taco stand around 7:00 p.m.. Two police officers were killed and a third along with four civilians were wounded.
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Periodico Correo noted that car bombs have been used in targeted attacks against police in Guanajuato at least since September 2018, when a backpack full of explosives was left outside the Ministerio Publico offices in Apaseo el Grande.
Guanajuato is the most violent state in Mexico for police officers according to Causa en Común’s database on police killings in Mexico, which reveals that 42 police killing have occurred this year in the state. Nationwide, 207 police officers have been killed.
Between the start of the year and May 2023, Guanajuato has seen 1,128 homicides. Guanajuato has been the most violent state in Mexico by homicide count for five years, mostly due to an intense dispute between two criminal organizations, the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion and the Cartel Santa Rosa de Lima. These two criminal groups and their allies fight for control of drug dealing, fuel theft and drug trafficking markets.
Sources: La Silla Rota, La Silla Rota, Causa en Común, Milenio, Borderland Beat Archives, Periodico Correo