Americans Ended Up Dead In Mexican Gang War!

Two Americans died by bullets of the Mexican cartel.

Two of four Americans ended up dead after they were kidnapped over the weekend.

The Mexican cartels are at war and it has been a bloody battle. It is a high alert around the areas where 

They were caught in a gun fight in the city of Matamoros, Mexico. They were caught and taken to an undisclosed location. Two of the victims, both men were killed. The women were spared. They were not raped or tortured.

One of the victims warned the group it was dangerous. The American consulate in Mexico had issued a warning to travelers that day. On Tuesday, Mexican officials announced that two of them had been found dead and two survived, one of whom was injured. Officials have not shared any information about the surviving Americans' location. 

The women survive. The men were shot and killed.

Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador said that authorities would give more information throughout the day. 

U.S. officials also confirmed on Monday that a Mexican citizen was killed in the initial attack.

CBS News has learned that the kidnapped Americans are Latavia "Tay" McGee, Shaeed Woodard, Eric James Williams and Zindell Brown. Mexican officials have not released any information about who died and who survived. 

Zalandria Brown, of Florence, South Carolina, told The Associated Press she'd been in contact with the FBI and local officials after learning that her younger brother, Zindell Brown, was one of the four victims.

Zalandria Brown said Zindell Brown, who lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and two friends were with a third friend who was going to Mexico for "tummy tuck" cosmetic surgery. A doctor who advertises such surgeries in Matamoros didn't answer calls from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Zalandia Brown said the four knew of the dangers in Mexico and Zindell kept saying they shouldn't go.

The four Americans traveled to Matamoros, in Tamaulipas state, across from Brownsville, Texas, on Friday in a white minivan with North Carolina license plates, the FBI said.

The agency's San Antonio Division office said in a statement Sunday that the vehicle came under fire shortly after it entered Mexico.

"All four Americans were placed in a vehicle and taken from the scene by armed men," the office said.

The FBI offered a $50,000 reward for the return of the victims and the arrest of the culprits.

On Friday the U.S. Consulate issued an alert about a shooting and local authorities warned people to shelter in place. The alert also reminded U.S. citizens that this particular part of Mexico is a "Level 4: Do Not Travel," which is the highest warning in the U.S. State Department's travel advisory system.  

The consulate in Matamoros has posted at least four security alerts since February 2020, warning of drug cartel violence, crime, kidnappings and clashes involving armed groups.