A YOUNG American woman was shot dead in cold blood by Mexican cartels who reportedly mistook her dad’s car for a rival gang vehicle.

Isabel Ashanti Gomez was returning home with her father Valentin in his Ford F-150 truck when a heavily armed gang started firing at them.

And instead of stopping his pickup truck, Isabel’s father accelerated and tried to crash through the barrier.

However, Isabel tragically died instantly in a hail of gunfire.

Her father and a friend, named only as 26-year-old Danae, were seriously wounded in the bloodbath.

Cops believe the roadblock had been set up by the notoriously ultra-violent Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

The gang is one of several ruthless crime groups battling to control drugs and arms trafficking in the region.

Isabel is reported to hold joint US and Mexican nationality and often stayed in the area with her family.

Just hours before she was killed, she shared images of herself dancing with an uncle on social media.

The caption read: “Happy birthday, Uncle Fire Machine. Thank you for always treating me like a daughter, I love you very much.

“I hope you keep celebrating many more birthdays. See you later, after I’ve had a shower.”

Cops are now investigating the shooting.

Mexico is plagued by cartels who maintain control over drug routes, eliminate rivals, and deter those who dare to oppose them.

A recent study he cites estimates that over 300,000 people now work in Mexico’s criminal underworld.

CNJC was founded in 2009, and its ruthless rise to global dominance has left bodies and screams in its wake.

The cartel’s drug trafficking empire has expanded to all corners of the globe, despite intense competition from other cartels in Mexico and increasingly urgent efforts by international authorities to restrain them.

The gangsters are now buying high-calibre weapons to fight their enemies.

Security expert Professor Anthony Glees mentioned to The Sun that Trump might consider launching airstrikes in Mexico to “wage a war” against the lethal cartels that threaten his “Fortress America”.

The largest cartels are based in Mexico and Colombia, and according to a US Congress report, pose the “greatest organised crime threat” to America.

Despite efforts by the Mexican government to crack down on organised crime, the cartels continue to expand their influence, fueled by the billions made from drug trafficking.

Their ability to enforce their will through terror — whether by recruiting through fear or eliminating opposition through sheer brutality — has made them some of the most powerful and dangerous criminal organisations in the world.