CIUDAD JUÁREZ, Mexico — Confused hit men may have gone to the wrong party, the FBI said Tuesday as it cast doubt on fears that the slaying of three people with ties to the U.S. consulate shows Mexican drug cartels have launched an offensive against U.S. government employees.
Gunmen chased two white SUVs from the birthday party of a consulate employee’s child Saturday and opened fire. The two near-simultaneous attacks left three adults dead and at least two children wounded.
The FBI is still investigating the victims’ backgrounds, but experts cast doubt on the idea that drug cartels would be interested in turning their guns on U.S. federal employees.
“A systematic, nationwide shift to the use of such tactics would work against drug traffickers’ interests,” said Allyson Benton, an analyst with the Eurasia Group. “It would dramatically raise the level of both Mexican and U.S. governmental involvement in the fight against organized crime.”
Mexican President Felipe Calderon, Foreign Relations Secretary Patricia Espinosa and U.S. Ambassador Carlos Pascual flew to Ciudad Juárez on Tuesday to express their outrage.
