JAKARTA - The United States has decided to temporarily close its consulate in the border town of Nuevo Laredo, after being hit by gunfire overnight and trailers being set on fire in downtown streets, following the arrest of a gang leader in Mexico, authorities said.
Shots at the Mexican consulate and military buildings were reported amid gunfights and chases in parts of the city located across from Laredo, Texas, the Ministry of Public Security in Tamaulipas State said in a statement.
Suspected gang members paralyzed traffic in Nuevo Laredo early Monday by blocking roads with nails and setting a truck trailer on fire, the statement said.
The US Consulate advised its employees to stay indoors and urged US citizens to do the same or avoid the area. The consulate will be temporarily closed to the public, the Mexican government said later in a statement.
Separately, a senior Tamaulipas official told Reuters there had been at least one death from the violence.
The shootout followed the arrest of Juan Gerardo Trevino, or 'El Huevo' on Sunday, the Mexican government said in a statement.
Trevino faces US extradition orders for drug trafficking and money laundering, as well as state-level charges of murder, terrorism, racketeering, and criminal association, the statement added.
He is also a US citizen, a Mexican government official told Reuters. Trevino is on the US Border Patrol's list of most wanted criminals, according to media reports.
Meanwhile, a Mexican statement named Trevino as the leader of the Northeast Cartel, a branch of the Zetas gang, as well as the boss of the assassin group "Tropas del Infierno" (Army from Hell).
The Mexican government said the arrests were a "strong blow" to the cartel's power in the region.
The government said in a subsequent statement it was committed to security cooperation with the United States. And, the criminal organizations involved in the incident will face the legal burden of both countries.
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