Tuesday, September 30, 2008

16 bodies found in Tijuana

Unbelievable. It's early Monday morning. Several shots are fired in a middle-class Tijuana neighborhood. 16 bodies lay there, some seminaked, some missing tongues, and a sign that reads: 'this is what's going to happen to those who work with el ingeniero,' whose real name is Fernando Sánchez Arellano, the head of the Arellano Cartel or Cartel de Tijuana. Read the full story here. Photo by my friend David Maung.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Inmates say they are ok...

After several days of riots that led to the death of 24 inmates and dozens of injured, authorities offered this video to the media in which they ask the prisoners how they are doing.

What would you say if a prison official holding a camera asks you how you are doing? Here's what they said:



New Photos of Caos at Tijuana Prison

These are some of the photos I took while covering the riot. I was more focused on shooting footage, so the photos you see here were just taken very quickly.



Officer looks into a potential escape route






Smoke fills the air.











The buildings set ablaze three days earlier...
















A close-knit community.






Tuesday, September 23, 2008

New images inside penitentiary

Mexican authorities released a video of inmates talking on the phone, teleconferencing with family members, cooking in the kitchen, and overall showing that everything is under control.

But the day after they released the footage, an inmate died beaten to death. Four prisoners are suspected of committing the crime.

Hard to believe.

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Man jumps border fence



Why dig a tunnel, as a good friend of mine recently asked, when you can jump the fence?

This guy should know. He fired himself from Tijuana to San Diego, and landed masterfully. Took the photo with my digital rebel.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Inside Tijuana's Notorious Penitenciary


Crazy week.


Inmates at Tijuana's infamous state penitentiary riot TWICE, and I get to dodge the bullets and film and photograph Mexican authorities as they attempt to bring order to the place.

I wasn't sure what was worse: standing with the masses and risk getting teargas (or worse) by police, or stand alongside the riot police as hundreds threw chunks of concrete.

This is a picture I took looking into the prison through a hole that inmates made while trying to escape. Good thing they didn't. Outside there were dozens of heavily armed federal police ready to shot. The metal fence was already full of bullet holes.

Crazy.

Video of riot in Tijuana



This is a video I did on the riot. I got there about a half an hour after it started. The shots heard are probably the ones that killed 19 inmates. No officers were killed. Smells like a massacre. My grandma, and two aunts live two blocks from there.