PULSE NEWS MEXICO

General José Silvestre Urzúa, chief coordinator of the National Guard (GN) in the northern Mexican state of Zacatecas, was shot to death on Thursday, Nov. 24, during a confrontation with alleged criminal gangs in the municipality of Pinos, near the Zacatecas border with the state of San Luis Potosí.

Silvestre Urzúa and his men were attacked by a group of armed civilians who also confronted GN security forces in surrounding towns.

Zacatecas Governor David Monreal issued instructions for an immediate investigation into the incident, and according to local media reports, despite being rushed to the hospital, Urzúa Padilla died from his wounds shortly after the attack.

The confrontation also left three other GN guards and two Zacatecas police officers injured, and at least five suspected criminals died in the shootout.

Silvestre Urzúa took office on Jan. 4 of this year as coordinator of the Eleventh Military Zone in the Municipality of Guadalupe, a suburb of the state capital.

Zacatecas has been plagued by a wave of growing violence from warring drug cartels feuding over control of the state.

In the last few months, at least one police officer has been killed each day in Zacatecas while on duty, despite an increased military and GN presence ordered by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO).