Four members of a band along with their manager were discovered deceased on a ranch located near the Texas border, according to Tamaulipas’ attorney general from the northeastern state, announced on Thursday.
The members of Grupo Fugitivo were taken along with their manager prior to a planned private event in Reynosa, a city by the border on Sunday, with their bodies being found on Wednesday evening.
The deceased individuals were identified as band members Francisco Vázquez, 20; Víctor Garza, 21; José Morales, 23; and Nemesio Durán, 40. Also found was Livan Solís, 27, who was the manager and photographer for the group.
Their bodies were found on the fringes of Reynosa, in the northern part of the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico.
The norteño musicians, who performed at parties and local dances in the region, and their manager were abducted Sunday around 10pm while traveling in a SUV on the way to a venue where they were hired to play, according to Tamaulipas Attorney General Irving Barrios.
The Tamaulipas prosecutor’s office also said nine suspects believed to be part of Los Metros, a faction of the Gulf Cartel, which has strong presence in Reynosa, were arrested. Cops seized two vehicles and two firearms.
Authorities were not immediately able to say why the men were slain, and did not deny reports by local media that the bodies had been burned.
Grupo Fugitivo performed at a private event in Riberas de Rancho Grande, a town in Reynosa, and were traveling in a black GMC to a second private booking.
Grupo Fugitivo members Victor Garza (second from left), Francisco Vazquez (center), José Morales (second from right), Nemesio Duran (right) were kidnapped Sunday while on their way to a private show in the border city of Reynosa near the border with Texas and found dead at a ranch Wednesday. Lead singer Carlos González (left) survived because he arrived at the meeting point and did not see his band mates
Grupo Fugitivo band manager Livan Solís, who also handled photography duties, was also found dead
They made a stop at the McAllen-Reynosa International Bridge, where they posed for pictures and filmed a short video clip that were uploaded on their Facebook account at 9:54 pm and 9:55 pm.
Shortly thereafter, Vázquez, Garza, Morales, Durán and Solís left in the SUV while lead singer traveled in a separate vehicle
González arrived at the meeting point but did not see his bandmates and decided to return home, according to media reports.
The missing SUV was located Tuesday but did not show any signs of violence.
González has yet to comment on the incident.
Group Fugitivo formed in 2023 and played Mexican regional music, which encapsulates a wide range of styles including corridos and cumbia – has in recent years gained a spotlight as it’s entered a sort of international musical renaissance.
Young artists sometimes pay homage to leaders of drug cartels, often portrayed as Robin Hood-type figures.
Mexican security forces arrested nine alleged members of Los Metros, a gang linked to the Gulf Cartel, for their role in the kidnapping and murder of four Grupo Fugitivo musicians and their manager
Grupo Fugitivo lead singer Carlos González was the only musician who was not kidnapped
Authorities discovered the remains of four Grupo Fugitivo musicians and their manager at a ranch. All five victims’ bodies were burned
It was not immediately clear if the group played such songs or if the artists were simply victims of rampant cartel violence that has eclipsed the city.
However, other artists have faced death threats by cartels, while others have had their visas stripped by the United States under accusations by the Trump administration that they were glorifying criminal violence.
The last time the musicians were heard from was the night they were kidnapped, when they told family members they were on the way to the event. After that, nothing else was heard of them.
Grupo Fugitivo formed in 2023 and played Mexican regional music, which encapsulates a wide range of styles including corridos and cumbia
Four Grupo Fugitivo musicians and their manager were traveling in a GMC to perform at a private party when they were intercepted and kidnapped Sunday in Reynosa, a border city in the northeastern Mexico state of Tamaulipas. Authorities inspected the vehicle and did not detect signs of violence
Their disappearance caused an uproar in Tamaulipas, a state long eclipsed by cartel warfare. Their families reported the disappearances, called on the public for support and people took to the streets in protest.
On Wednesday, protesters blocked the international bridge connecting Reynosa and Pharr, Texas, later going to a local cathedral to pray and make offerings to the disappeared.
Reynosa is a Mexican border city adjacent to the United States and has been plagued by escalating violence since 2017 due to internal disputes among groups vying for control of drug trafficking, human smuggling and fuel theft.
This case follows another that occurred in 2018, when armed men kidnapped two members of the musical group ‘Los Norteños de Río Bravo,’ whose bodies were later found on the federal highway connecting Reynosa to Río Bravo, Tamaulipas.
