The U.S. Department of State released video of what State Department officials are describing as the shooting of a U.S. consulate employee in Guadalajara, Mexico on Friday.
The video shows a man who appears to be stalking the U.S. consulate employee, who a State Department official would not identify by name to LawNewz.com, citing safety concerns.
The man then appears to draw a weapon and fire at least one shot into the consulate employee’s vehicle, before running away.
The State Department further told LawNewz.com:
The safety and security of U.S. citizens and our employees overseas is among our highest priorities. We are working closely with Mexican law enforcement in this matter. This incident is under investigation. The FBI is offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to the identification of the shooter. We can confirm the victim works for the State Department but, due to privacy considerations, we have no additional information to share at this time.
Several news outlets are citing a report from the French news agency AFP that a suspect has been arrested in the shooting within the the last hour, however, a State Department official refused to conform those reports.
After the shooting, the FBI put out a large reward for information leading to the shooter’s arrest and the consulate Facebook page also posted this information:
ABC News is also now reporting that a suspect was arrested, citing a tweet from officials in the state of Jalisco, where Guadalajara is located. A Mexican special forces team reportedly conducted an operation recently and handed the wanted man over to prosecutors.
The U.S. consulate officer survived the shooting and is reportedly in stable condition.
The state of Jalisco is known for heavy cartel activity, but it is way too soon to speculate what role, if any, the cartel played in the attack.
There have been several high profile attacks on Americans in Mexico in recent years, most recently in 2012 when two men believed to be CIA officers, along with a Mexican Marine, where shot at by federal police in what the Mexican government ultimately called a case of mistaken identity.
In 1985, an undercover DEA Agent named Enrique “Kiki” Camarena was kidnapped, tortured and killed by members of the Guadalajara drug cartel, according to U.S. prosecutors.
[image via screengrab]