Drug cartel gunmen have attacked planes at a Mexican airport in reprisal for the government’s arrest of kingpin El Chapo’s son.
The terrifying assault on Culiacan International Airport in the country’s Sinaloa province was captured in dramatic videos.
Horrific footage shows Sinaloa cartel thugs opening fire on a commercial aircraft as it taxied along the runway, with terrified passengers diving for cover behind seats.
The Mexican airline Aeromexico has said that a plane meant to fly from Culiacan to Mexico City was hit by gunfire and has been cancelled.
The airline said that no one was hurt in the incident, according to Reuters, and the airport remains closed until Thursday night.
Footage also showed a Mexican military aircraft being fired upon as it landed at the airport amid chaotic scenes.
Ovidio Guzman, a son of jailed trafficker Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman was arrested early on Thursday, unleashing a violent response from the cartel.
Defence Minister Luis Cresencio Sandoval told reporters that the country’s security forces had captured the 32-year-old senior member of the Sinaloa Cartel.
Ovidio Guzman became a key cartel figure following his father’s arrest and conviction. He was briefly detained three years ago but embarrassingly released to end violence in Culiacan.
The arrest comes as Joe Biden prepares to attend a summit of North American leaders in Mexico City next week.
The US had offered a $5m reward for information leading to the capture or arrest of Ovidio Guzman.
