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The terrorist group known as the Gulf Cartel has shared a short video via messaging groups where they allegedly loaded improvised explosive devices onto a drone. The criminal organization uses these drones to drop explosives on rivals, police forces, and others as part of their ongoing turf war in the northern part of Tamaulipas.

In the video, a group of the Escorpion faction of the Gulf Cartel arms the drone while a narco-ballad plays in the background. The date of when the video was filmed remains unclear. The law enforcement sources who shared it with Breitbart Texas revealed that it was recorded in recent days in the city of Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas — a short distance south of Donna, Texas.

As Breitbart Texas reported, the Escorpiones faction of the Gulf Cartel has been waging a fierce turf war with a rival faction called Metros based out of Reynosa, Tamaulipas, for control of drug and human smuggling routes. The two sides have been using armored vehicles and large deployments of gunmen for their clashes. In recent months, the Escorpiones have been using makeshift landmines, IEDs, and other explosives.

Breitbart Texas reported exclusively in June on the arrest of William Louis Anhert, a former U.S. Army soldier who was working for the Escorpiones and teaching them how to build explosive devices. Mexican authorities arrested Anhert and flew him to Mexico City, where he is facing federal charges tied to the manufacture of explosives.

Initially, the explosives were only used along rural dirt roads to fend off an incursion by rivals. However, in recent weeks, the Escorpiones have been using their drones to target police forces. Despite the efforts of the Tamaulipas government to diminish negative information, officials were forced to confirm that in one attack cartel, gunmen used drones to drop explosives on a convoy of police armored vehicles.

The Metros have also been linked to the use of explosives, which the Tamaulipas government has tried to deny. In September, a large explosion killed two people in Reynosa. Initially, Tamaulipas authorities tried to claim that the blast was caused by the improper storage of fireworks for church events. Months later, authorities had to return to that exact location after finding explosive devices in the rubble.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.