BajaNomad - 2 Americans shot in TJ

2 Americans shot in TJ

805gregg - 4-4-2011 at 06:14 PM

It was just reported on the evening news that 2 Americans waiting in there truck in line to cross the border, were approached by two gunmen and shot and killed. Anyone confirm this? I started crossing at Tecate a few years ago.

woody with a view - 4-4-2011 at 06:20 PM

dig up the link from the news stations website.

DENNIS - 4-4-2011 at 06:21 PM

http://www.frontera.info/EdicionEnLinea/Notas/Policiaca/0404...

Spanish to English translation
While conducting line to cross into the U.S., were executed two people on board his vehicle.

According to authorities, the incident occurred about 2:40 pm today on the bridge Mexico, where he found a white pickup truck with two people dead inside.

Witnesses said a man approached the vehicle lined up to cross to the U.S. and made several gun blasts and then withdraw.

The victims were identified as Sergio Salcido Luna, 25, and Kevin Joel Romero, 28.

Around the car were 5 9 mm shell casings.

bajario - 4-4-2011 at 07:24 PM

Why is this not in our stateside news? Maybe this will be the beginning or the end of some overdue revolt, retaliation, retribution brought on by?

Cyanide41 - 4-4-2011 at 07:38 PM

Tomorrow I am letting everyone cut in front of me!

Marc - 4-4-2011 at 07:38 PM

Drug related for sure.

woody with a view - 4-4-2011 at 07:39 PM

i'm sure it was a random thing...... just like 99% of the rest. :rolleyes:

movinguy - 4-4-2011 at 07:45 PM

And there were witnesses - who just watched these guys walk away (?)

No one wants to get involved . . .

cabo3100 - 4-4-2011 at 08:02 PM

It's hittin local San Diego news

DENNIS - 4-4-2011 at 08:30 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by movinguy
And there were witnesses - who just watched these guys walk away (?)

No one wants to get involved . . .

How involved would anyone want to get with a someone who just wasted a couple of guys and still had the gun in his hand?

movinguy - 4-4-2011 at 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by DENNIS

Quote:

Originally posted by movinguy
And there were witnesses - who just watched these guys walk away (?)

No one wants to get involved . . .

How involved would anyone want to get with a someone who just wasted a couple of guys and still had the gun in his hand?

OK - maybe a bad example, but when something like this happens, nobody saw anything . . .

Seems like we have more of an old west mentality north of the border, where we want the bad guys to go down at all costs. In MX, you're advised to stay out of it.

But I would agree that if you're not involved in the underlying shenanigans you have nothing to worry about . . .

JaraHurd - 4-4-2011 at 08:41 PM

On a shooting like that in the States no one gets involved either...most of the time....atleast not where I work.

BajaRat - 4-4-2011 at 08:47 PM

Usually crimes with this much passion have deeper roots.

DENNIS - 4-4-2011 at 09:01 PM

Cartels have brought a whole new reality to Mexico. Culturally, Mexicans don't see much of what's not there business and with fear of retaliation, they see even less. The police they might report the crime to are an unknown as to their loyalties.

Bajahowodd - 4-4-2011 at 09:09 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by BajaRat
Usually crimes with this much passion have deeper roots.

Like I'd love to know what sort of cargo they were carrying.

surfdoc - 4-4-2011 at 09:43 PM

This line says alot.....

The double homicide happened at 2:40 a.m. at 2nd Street and Puente México in the Río zone.

I'm thinking these guys were not registered on the Baja Nomad website...

A good day to cross

Dave - 4-4-2011 at 09:47 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Cyanide41
Tomorrow I am letting everyone cut in front of me!

Tomorrow, there might not be much of a line. :rolleyes:

surfer jim - 4-4-2011 at 10:22 PM

Wonder how traffic was for the people behind them?

Maybe just street vendors mad they didn't buy anything.

David K - 4-4-2011 at 10:50 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by surfdoc
This line says alot.....

The double homicide happened at 2:40 a.m. at 2nd Street and Puente México in the Río zone.

I'm thinking these guys were not registered on the Baja Nomad website...

Dennis posted it was 2:40 p.m. ???

The time would make a difference in one's conclussions. No matter, where are the police and 'tourist police'. An afternoon hit would tend to make everyone head for Tecate to wait in a line (though a hit could be any line in Mexico).

Two men shot and killed at border crossing

BajaNews - 4-4-2011 at 11:15 PM

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/apr/04/two-men-shot-...

By Sandra Dibble
April 4, 2011 at 8:43 p.m.

TIJUANA — In a rare shooting at the San Ysidro border crossing, two San Diego workers were killed early Monday as they sat in a pickup waiting to enter the U.S. The men were on their way to work when someone shot them repeatedly with a 9 mm weapon.

The Baja California Attorney General’s Office identified the victims as Kevin Joel Romero, 28, and Sergio Salcido Luna, 25. The agency provided few details of the incident, which occurred at about 2:40 a.m., a time when many workers are in line to cross.

The men’s employer said they lived in Tijuana and worked for West Coast Beverage Maintenance, a company on Morena Boulevard that services and cleans draft beer equipment for bars and restaurants.

Matt Pelot, the company’s owner, said Romero and Salcido had worked for him for about 1 1/2 years. He said both were U.S. citizens who lived in Mexico to keep down expenses.

“They were good guys,” Pelot said. “I don’t think they were dealing drugs, selling drugs or anything to do with drugs. They were both very hardworking individuals. They had a zest for life.”

A Mexican law-enforcement source said the two men apparently were targeted by an assailant who approached on foot between the lines of vehicles, fired his weapon and fled. The Attorney General’s Office statement said that they had been shot in the head, chest, and arms.

Attorney General Rommel Moreno Manjarrez told reporters that detectives were investigating the possibility that the incident could be drug related. He said one of the victims – he did not say which one – had a “small packet of drugs among his belongings.”

Neither U.S. nor Mexican officials immediately confirmed the men’s nationality Monday. But a U.S. law-enforcement source said that it appeared that neither had criminal records.

Pelot said the men were friends who would cross early, as many workers do, and take a nap before showing up for work. Both worked out in gyms and were clean cut.

The younger of the two, Salcido, was a cage fighter – a form of martial arts – who was training for a fight in June. Romero was in the process of adopting his girlfriend’s 5-year-old son. “They worked real hard and wanted to pick up as much overtime as possible,” Pelot said.

More than 24 million people crossed in personal vehicles last fiscal year at the San Ysidro border crossing, according to Customs and Border Protection.

Shootings in the border crossing lanes are extremely rare. In January 2002, a Mexican soldier sprayed bullets into cars waiting in line on the Mexican side of the Otay Mesa border crossing, wounding three people. In April 1995, a stray bullet from a police shootout hit an innocent Mexican motorist in the head as he was waiting in line to cross into the United States, killing him instantly.

David K - 4-4-2011 at 11:19 PM

AP says it was BEFORE DAWN... so a.m. is correct! Dennis, please edit!

– Mon Apr 4, 7:45 pm ET

TIJUANA, Mexico – Two men who prosecutors identified as U.S. citizens were shot to death in their vehicle early Monday as they waited at a Tijuana-area border crossing to enter the United States.

Prosecutors in Baja California state quote witnesses as saying a gunman approached the line of vehicles waiting at the San Ysidro border crossing and fired into the men's pickup truck, hitting the victims in the head, arms and body.

The state Attorney General's Office says the men were U.S. citizens aged 25 and 28. The U.S. consulate in Tijuana did not immediately return phone calls seeking confirmation. There was no immediate information on their hometowns.

Investigators said they found 9-mm shell casings at the scene. That ammunition is used in weapons favored by drug cartel gunmen in Mexico.

The shooting occurred before dawn Monday. The men's pickup had California plates. Both victims were dead by the time authorities arrived.

DENNIS - 4-5-2011 at 06:02 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
AP says it was BEFORE DAWN... so a.m. is correct! Dennis, please edit!

I would, but I don't want to chance offending the Google Translator. The Frontera article only said "Hoy." The translator made a further assumption as to AM/PM. The machine is starting to think for itself and if that doesn't scare you, nothing will. :lol:

monoloco - 4-5-2011 at 06:59 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by DENNIS

Quote:

Originally posted by movinguy
And there were witnesses - who just watched these guys walk away (?)

No one wants to get involved . . .

How involved would anyone want to get with a someone who just wasted a couple of guys and still had the gun in his hand?

I'm sure that if any nomads would have witnessed this they would have jumped out of their car and made a citizens arrest on the spot. :lol:

805gregg - 4-5-2011 at 07:43 AM

It's probably still safe everyone knows those shooters are good shots, no need to worry about stray bullets. And if your in the car behind them just cover your kids eyes.

DENNIS - 4-5-2011 at 07:59 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by monoloco
I'm sure that if any nomads would have witnessed this they would have jumped out of their car and made a citizens arrest on the spot. :lol:

Of course. They would show them their Sindicatura card and tell them they have some important phone numbers. :lol:

Phil S - 4-5-2011 at 09:41 AM

There is also the possibility that they were following this couple, and decided they wouldn't get a chance to "hit" them after they crossed the border. So. Bang! right there in the line. He takes off back through the line, off the roadway, and catches a cab back to his casa. Driver of car crosses border, heads to whereever his destination is. Plot ends. No arrests. Unless, someone close by behind happens to have their camera in hand, and provides a photo of the guy?????

DENNIS - 4-5-2011 at 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Phil S
Unless, someone close by behind happens to have their camera in hand, and provides a photo of the guy?????

I can't figure out where their car was in relation to the gate, but if they were anywhere near it, they were on camera. You can bet on that.

BajaBlanca - 4-5-2011 at 10:32 AM

horrible occurance. and guns are illegal in Mexico ....

DENNIS - 4-5-2011 at 10:42 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by BajaBlanca
guns are illegal in Mexico ....

Yoo Hoo....Blanca.............It's more than likely cartel stuff. They don't mind breaking a law or two while making a point.

David K - 4-5-2011 at 11:04 AM

When guns are outlawed... only outlaws will have guns... :light:

Places with the strongest gun control laws have the highest crime levels. :yes:

Martyman - 4-5-2011 at 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by movinguy
And there were witnesses - who just watched these guys walk away (?)

No one wants to get involved . . .

Just like at the Dodger game.

Go Giants

Jim/Liisa - 4-5-2011 at 02:19 PM

One thing I noticed that my local paper made no mention of this incedent, and they normally do such as the guy in the wheel chair found with concealed marawana.

I personaly think if the two gentilmen had last names like Smith or Jones for example you would still be hearing about this.

805gregg - 4-5-2011 at 06:07 PM

The reason country's have gun contol laws is they are doing a poor job of running that country (ie Mexico) and they fear revolution, as they should.

Tano - 4-5-2011 at 07:30 PM

I just saw a piece on TV up here in LA, and they said it was a love-triangle problem. They even interviewed a relative who seemed to confirm this.

Relative Says Love Triangle Behind Border Shootings

BajaNews - 4-5-2011 at 09:34 PM

http://www.10news.com/news/27446438/detail.html

April 5, 2011

SAN DIEGO -- Law enforcement officials in Mexico say they do not believe drugs were behind the shooting deaths of two American men waiting to cross the border at San Ysidro.

U.S. Consulate spokesman Joseph L. Crook said the men were waiting in line in their vehicle early Monday almost half a mile (almost a kilometer) from the San Ysidro crossing, one of the world's busiest ports of entry.

"Our condolences go out to their families at this difficult time," the consulate said in a statement. "We are working closely with the Mexican authorities to ascertain all of the facts."

Marcela Romero, the aunt of 28-year-old victim Kevin Romero, said "You never expect this. There are no words to describe the pain."

According to Mexican authorities, Romero and his best friend, 25-year-old mixed martial artist Sergio Salcido Luna, were shot point-blank in the head and chest.

Family members said Salcido and Romero lived in Tijuana to save money, but both were American and worked in San Diego.

According to Mexican authorities, the two waited to cross into the U.S. at the San Ysidro border crossing early Monday morning when an unidentified gunman walked up and shot them.

Mexican authorities released new photos to 10News of the white pickup truck Salcido and Romero were in, which was owned by their employer.

The victims both worked for West Coast Beverage Maintenance, a business on Morena Boulevard in Bay Park. Their employer says both men were good guys and hardworking individuals with a zest for life. They're confident the victims were not involved with drugs in any way.

Matt Pelot of West Coast Beverage Maintenance said Romero's sister called him Monday morning to tell him they had been killed.

"She just said I just wanted to let you know that Sergio and Kevin were shot and killed this morning at the border, and obviously I was taken back," he said. "I was in shock, and I'm still in shock. These were good guys. Obviously no one deserves to die like this, but these were good guys."

Investigators initially said one of the victims had drugs on them, but now they believe the shooting was not drug related.

Pelot said he was just thinking of promoting Romero. Romero was trying to adopt his Mexican girlfriend's son and move them to the United States someday, while Salcido, he said, was a single guy who was born in Tijuana to U.S. citizens and grew up in Bakersfield, Calif. He said Salcido loved martial arts and was training for an upcoming bout in Tijuana. Baja California prosecutors said Salcido had dual nationality.

"Kevin Romero didn't even drink beer," Pelot said. "These guys weren't dealing drugs, that's for sure. If Sergio was your friend, he'd give you the shirt off his back. Kevin was the same. He was a real family oriented guy who couldn't wait to get home and take a walk on his beach with his son and dogs."

Marcela Romero believed all along her nephew was not involved with drugs.

"He was very caring, very responsible, hardworking," she told 10News.

She said she believes the likely motive in the shooting is a love triangle gone bad that involves Salcido.

Romero said in December Salcido caught his girlfriend cheating and got into a fight with the other man. Since then, she said, the man left voicemails and text messages threatening to kill Salcido.

Romero said she plans to take out ads in local newspapers to spread the word until her nephew's killer is caught.

grizzlyfsh95 - 4-6-2011 at 06:43 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jim/Liisa
One thing I noticed that my local paper made no mention of this incedent, and they normally do such as the guy in the wheel chair found with concealed marawana.

I personaly think if the two gentilmen had last names like Smith or Jones for example you would still be hearing about this.

And why, exactly, would you think that? Is there an ongoing problem with people with English surnames?

Melondeverdad - 4-6-2011 at 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
When guns are outlawed... only outlaws will have guns... :light:

Places with the strongest gun control laws have the highest crime levels. :yes:

Your first statement is correct, but your second is pure NRA BS. Canada has strict gun control, but lower crime than the US .... Same with most European nations.

Cypress - 4-6-2011 at 07:26 AM

Must be another factor at play with the legality of guns and the crime rate?

Melondeverdad - 4-6-2011 at 07:30 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by 805gregg
The reason country's have gun contol laws is they are doing a poor job of running that country (ie Mexico) and they fear revolution, as they should.

So according to this line of logic the US should have strict gun control laws, no?

Hard to think of a place being more poorly run, lol. Falling currency, real estate, trade levels. Rising unemployment, multiple war fronts. :rolleyes:

DENNIS - 4-6-2011 at 07:31 AM

The explaination being offered is that this is the result of a love triangle. I wonder how the amor-crazed shooter enlisted a friend to join him in the murder and why there seemed to be two targets?
If I had a relative who was blown away in the streets of TJ, I'd claim crime of passion too. It's much more culturally acceptable.....almost heroic.

mtgoat666 - 4-6-2011 at 07:56 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by DENNIS
The explaination being offered is that this is the result of a love triangle.

denny,
you should have written "one explanation being offered..."

DENNIS - 4-6-2011 at 08:01 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by mtgoat666

Quote:

Originally posted by DENNIS
The explaination being offered is that this is the result of a love triangle.

denny,
you should have written "one explanation being offered..."

The romantic in me says to listen the explaination with the background strumming of Spanish guitars........not AK 47s.

lizard lips - 4-6-2011 at 09:11 AM

One or both of these guys peeed off the wrong person. It's obvious. Love triangle? A good excuse but we will never know the truth. Both men apparently had good steady jobs. I assume they were not making a lot of money but if they woke up that early to cross the shooter knew about it and they were easy targets. The shooter would not take a cab back to their house as Phil said. As everyone knows around the border area you can park close by and walk up to the cars in line and get back easy enough after you do the deed, especially at that hour. I really enjoy all the thoughts about the "who did it and why" especially about the guy in Bay of LA recently. Everyone has their own ideas and you just never know who is right but you have to think logically and look at the facts. When I investigate a murder or actually anything I look at it like having all these clues and checking them all out for their own merit and close the door. When all the doors are closed you have to come to some kind of conclusion.

David K - 4-6-2011 at 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Melondeverdad

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
When guns are outlawed... only outlaws will have guns... :light:

Places with the strongest gun control laws have the highest crime levels. :yes:

Your first statement is correct, but your second is pure NRA BS. Canada has strict gun control, but lower crime than the US .... Same with most European nations.

Thanks for correcting any wrong information!

I was only thinking of Mexico (the subject) and the U.S. (where I am from). I just remember that places in the U.S. like Washington D.C. and New York City have the highest crime as well as the most restrictive gun ownership laws.

Places where citizens have the freedom to protect themselves are rarely victimized, don't you think?

rts551 - 4-6-2011 at 09:28 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by David K

Quote:

Originally posted by Melondeverdad

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
When guns are outlawed... only outlaws will have guns... :light:

Places with the strongest gun control laws have the highest crime levels. :yes:

Your first statement is correct, but your second is pure NRA BS. Canada has strict gun control, but lower crime than the US .... Same with most European nations.

I guess you would have to ask someone in the middle east. Don't you think?

Jim/Liisa - 4-6-2011 at 09:51 AM

Perfect spot to do this, because no one will fess up not even the street vendors.

Cypress - 4-6-2011 at 09:59 AM

Guns are nice to have around the house, come in handy every now and then. In some areas it's smart to keep one in your vehicle or on your person. Sort of like insurance. :yes:

rts551 - 4-6-2011 at 10:02 AM

don't think having a gun for protection would have made any difference in this case.

bajaking76 - 4-6-2011 at 10:02 AM

The Frontera.info says that it was indeed a love triangle, it was a known person to the victims...the perp knew when and where to take his revenge....sad.

mtgoat666 - 4-6-2011 at 10:04 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
Places where citizens have the freedom to protect themselves are rarely victimized, don't you think?

dk:
statistics and examples, please!

marooon-Media Dogs Gnawing on a 9mm Bone

MrBillM - 4-6-2011 at 10:25 AM

Anyone who hasn't seen this story in their newspaper is reading the wrong paper. It's been in every paper I've seen, including the locals. And, it's being gnawed on constantly by the video media.

The MOST ludicrous angle is the "Presumption" that it's a result of a Drug Cartel hit BECAUSE 9mm rounds were involved.

"The CHOICE favored by Drug Cartels".

And, the majority of everybody else in the world with the possible exception of the Soviet-Bloc and Chicoms, of course.

Come to think of it, the 9mm is the CHOICE of the U.S. Military AND the ICE forces. MAYBE it was really part of some Government Conspiracy. Check with Gnu. He'll know.

The latest analysis of the "Love Triangle" (a few minutes ago) is viewed with doubt by the TV flacks BECAUSE "We know that they used 9mms and that's what the Cartels use".

Those of us who are sitting on stockpiles of 9mm x 19 weapons and ammo can take comfort in knowing that, should we need to whack someone, the cartels will get the blame.

I had set aside an old untraceable .22 for that purpose, but I do have one 9mm that also has no paper trail.

BajaGringo - 4-6-2011 at 10:50 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by MrBillM
I had set aside an old untraceable .22 for that purpose, but I do have one 9mm that also has no paper trail.

Only one???

Monday Border X-ing

O.G. - 4-6-2011 at 11:10 AM

I transited the Border around 10 A.M. Monday morning -- San Ysidro heading North. What a clusterf#@k that was. The line from where "Medico" splits off by the start of the barriers went waaay back into town around 6 blocks. Seems like every T.J. transit cop was there directing traffic. It took me 2 1/2 hours to cross! Next time I will try 3 A.M., if I'm sober by then that is... . :biggrin:

Solo Uno

MrBillM - 4-6-2011 at 12:30 PM

Cheap untraceable 9mm.

CHEAP and 9mm being the operative words.

The total of Handguns which have no paper trail (most having been privately,and legally, purchased many-many years ago) is a half-dozen or so, but most are quality weapons which I'd hate to throw away. The cheap off-brand .22 is probably not that good a choice, anyway, since I've always considered it my "throwdown" gun. Worn 2-inch barrel. At anything over Ten feet, it would probably result in a miss in a stress situation. I used to carry it around "Just in Case" the other guy (hopefully on the ground) needed a weapon.

Not having encountered a likely situation in years now, I'm probably just being Paranoid.

But, even Paranoids have enemies, as they say. Or mistakenly run into a bad situation.

bajatravelergeorge - 4-6-2011 at 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by O.G.
I transited the Border around 10 A.M. Monday morning -- San Ysidro heading North. What a clusterf#@k that was. The line from where "Medico" splits off by the start of the barriers went waaay back into town around 6 blocks. Seems like every T.J. transit cop was there directing traffic. It took me 2 1/2 hours to cross! Next time I will try 3 A.M., if I'm sober by then that is... . :biggrin:

I got in line at Otay Mesa at 8:00am, 2 3/4 hours for me to cross that Monday morning. Normally under 2 hours, sometimes under 1 hour. I hope this doesn't give the bad guys ideas about when to hit people. The Border is bad enough to cross without shootings going on in line.

DENNIS - 4-6-2011 at 01:58 PM

That Monday you guys are refering to was César Chávez Day....a holiday for some. I wonder if that had anything to do with the long wait time?

Woooosh - 4-6-2011 at 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by DENNIS
That Monday you guys are refering to was César Chávez Day....a holiday for some. I wonder if that had anything to do with the long wait time?

I crossed at the San Ysidro POE both Monday and Tuesday around 11am. Monday was much worse- 2.5 hours. Watched the traffic cops pull a few cars out of line who had cut into it by the Smart & Final- they seem to be enjoying themselves (always Mexican ladies in big suv's it seems). If you were a tourist heading to the border on the via rapida you were SOL- it was closed and you had to go into the zona rio which is also taped off at many places. You'd think if they were trying to attract tourists, the tourist driving lanes would be left open- or maybe even given priority. nah... And that new double-decker "toll road" they were supposed to start over the Via Rapida last November never happened wither.

On the two murders- I'm prone to accept the fighting for custody of a child and crime of passion angle. They weren't robbed, even of their US passports which can go for thousands on the black market. People go nuts when you try to take their kids away to another country. The shooter likely just walked away- in a hundred steps you are gone. Every car waiting in line has at least one Mexican talking on the cellphone but no one is going to snap a photo, and it was night. You'd think one of the border crossing cameras would have it on tape though.

BajaBlanca - 4-6-2011 at 03:38 PM

incredible that there are no descriptions of the assassins floating around.

Identities ?

MrBillM - 4-6-2011 at 04:17 PM

I heard that they both had dirty rags in one hand, a Spray bottle in the other and dozens of Cellphone Charging cords around their necks.

Obviuosly, in an attempt to blend in.

Police Chief Shot (Prima Topia)

jerryjust - 4-6-2011 at 06:02 PM

On Sunday at Rosarito soccer field the head of the police in Prima
Topia was shot. He was taking his wife and kids to a soccer game in the heart of Rosarito and many 9mm shells were found. His wife was taken to the hospital and his children were not hurt.It has been quite here for about 6 months and now,it seems to start again. A small item in the San Diego Trib appeared on page two.Nothing in or on the Mexican news or radio.

BajaGringo - 4-8-2011 at 09:15 AM

Those close to him (Sergio Salcido) seem to have obtained information that they had gotten into a verbal fight with somebody else while driving in Tijuana late at night / early in the AM. According to this version the other guys followed them to the border...

Sergio Salcido Luna Murder: The Inside Scoop

[Edited on 4-8-2011 by BajaGringo]