American Jet Skier Shot on Lake Straddling Border with Mexico

[GordMay]

Mexico says still investigating reported Falcon Lake pirate attack

➥ Mexico says still investigating reported Falcon Lake pirate attack

“... The state prosecutor's office of Tamaulipas in northern Mexico denied reports in American news media that Mexican authorities have quit searching for 30-year-old David Hartley. Mr. Hartley's wife says he was shot in the head Thursday by armed boaters.
Nor have Mexican authorities doubted the veracity of testimony coming from family of the deceased, the state prosecutor's office told the Monitor. Press officer Ruben Dario denied claims reportedly made by Hartley's family that a body has not been found because Mexican authorities have not bothered to look.
The 60-mile area of reservoir and lakes that straddles United States and Mexican territory has been hit by heavy rains that could make the search more difficult, Mr. Dario says. "The dam has been releasing lots of water to prevent dangerous levels, so there are many factors involved," he says.
Questionable claims?
Prosecutor Marco Antonio Guerrero from the municipality of Miguel Aleman, who is handling the investigation, said he could not comment by phone to the press. However, he denied reports that he had questioned whether Hartley's wife, Tiffany, was telling the truth about the attack.
CBS News reported Tuesday that Mr. Guerrero said no evidence of a crime existed as there was no sign of a jet ski or a life vest worn by Hartley, appearing to suggest that Tiffany could have had a hand in her husband's disappearance. "We are not certain that the incident happened the way they are telling us," he was quoted saying...”

Investigators Question Colorado Man's Death By Pirates

➥ Investigators Question Colorado Man's Death By Pirates - Denver News Story - KMGH Denver

“... Mexican officials found nothing during an exhaustive search on land and water at least a mile around each reported location.
"We are not sure," Marco Antonio Guerrero Carrizales, the district attorney in Miguel Aleman whose area also covers Falcon Lake, told the newspaper. "We are not certain that the incident happened the way that they are telling us."
Guerrero questions why neither Hartley’s personal watercraft nor his body — investigators were told he was wearing a life vest — have been found in the water.
Hartley's father, Dennis, said authorities in Mexico aren't doing enough to find his son's body ...”


Mexican investigators question alleged pirate attack on Falcon Reservoir
➥ Mexican investigators question alleged pirate attack on Falcon Reservoir | falcon, reservoir, heights - Local News - Valley Morning Star

Update: Questions Arise About Alleged Pirate Shooting in Texas
➥ Update: Questions Arise About Alleged Pirate Shooting in Texas | Field & Stream

[trinescape]

Reguardless whether they were jetskiers or yachties this is a despicable act and the offenders should be dealt with like wise violence what is the world comming to ? they call Australia the lucky country i am begining to understand this now....cheers andy

[bstreep]

OK, my $0.02, since we live not far from Falcon Lake.

Falcon is a great fishing lake. BUT, not in the summer. It's very, very remote - and consequently not a lot of folks go there. It's on the Rio Grande, south of Laredo. The entire COUNTY population is 14,000. There is a State Park, but it's empty this time of year.

When Falcon was created, it flooded a Mexican town. When the lake levels are low, you can boat into and around the town. Before the "drug problems" no one thought twice about crossing over into the Mexican side of the lake. You just did it.

The suspicions here in South Texas are that they wanted his jet ski (a top of the line, very fast boat). They were shooting AT them to make them stop, and once they actually shot him, they knew they were in trouble - as the bosses don't like this kind of attention. They likely took the life jacket off of the husband, put an anchor on him, and put him into a deep part of the lake. The lake is over 100 feet deep. and 84,000 acres. Possible they also sunk the jet ski. It's also possible that the shooters are also at the bottom of the lake...

There were witnesses to the event who have come forward. I'm betting her story is very real.

[SabreKai]

$5'll get you $10 she shot him. End of story.


Sabre

[maxingout]

When I first heard this story, the thought entered my mind (and my wife's mind), "What were they doing on a lake where there are pirates?"

Then we remembered that we sailed through the Malacca Straits, and through Pirate Alley between Yemen and Somalia before heading up the Red Sea.

Until the facts come out, I have no comments on this story.

If we had been captured by pirates, I am sure thousands of people would also be wondering what we were thinking when we sailed through Pirate Alley.

[Aussiesuede]

"Early Show" co-anchor Erica Hill reports there are new questions about what happened that day. Police in Mexico want to know if what Tiffany Hartley says happened is actually the truth.

Hill said there's still no sign of American tourist David Hartley four days after he was reportedly shot in the head by suspected pirates on a lake along the Mexican border.

His wife, Tiffany, 29, made a desperate 911 call after reportedly racing to his aid, but says she was chased away by gunfire.

In a 911 call, Tiffany said she saw three boats. He is now presumed dead and his body has not been recovered.

And now Mexican authorities are questioning whether the attack took place at all. In a statement, Marco Antonio Guerrero Carrizales, district attorney for the Miguel Aleman Province, writes, "We are not sure. We are not certain that the incident happened the way they are telling us."

"Early Show" co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez asked Tiffany, "You were returning from a day of sightseeing with David when this happened. I know that you had lived in Mexico for three years before moving back to the U.S. a couple of months ago. Did you know that there had been a spate of robberies on the lake? And did you have any concerns about going out that day?"

Tiffany replied, "We had heard about the pirates, and them robbing fishermen and whoever were over there. But we hadn't heard anything for several months. So, no, we had no concerns whatsoever of going over there, living in Reynosa, I mean, you live there for two and a half years, and we're not people who, you know, blend in. We stand out. We don't blend in. And we lived there, and we lived a life of no fear.

Mexico Lake Pirate Shooting Story Questioned - The Early Show - CBS News

[BlueSeas]

Originally Posted by zeehag

folks need to use caution on the border ... there is way too much nonesense going on there--is a place to avoid like plague. i drive away as quickly as allowed and i do no tdo border towns in mexico--INCLUDING ENSENADA. is considered a border town now, as folks re bypassing tijuana nd other border towns.

Blanket statements are not really accurate. Falcon Lake has had several incidences this year and should probably be approached with caution. Plenty of safe water on the US side.

On the other hand, I have fished Lake Amistad, just upstream from Falcon almost monthly for the last several years. Spent most of my time fishing the Mexican side of the lake. I have encountered real Mexican agents checking my fishing license, US Border Patrol, US Coast Guard gun boats and Texas P&W Game Wardens on the American side.

I think the difference is Amistad has much more traffic, but I have spent plenty of time alone in coves and remote areas of the lake without incident and without hearing of anyone having any problems.

As with most of these situations, it is important to know where to go and what precautions to take.

[Aussiesuede]

Mexican officials have identified two suspects in a pirate-attack. The two suspects were identified as Juan Pedro Saldivar Farias and his brother, Jose Manuel Saldivar Farias. Both men are said to be suspected members of the Zeta drug cartel from Nueva Ciudad Guerrero. The brothers are suspects in a string of murders, kidnappings, armed robberies and arson fires.

Mexican army soldiers searching for Hartley's body got into a shootout with suspected Zetas gang members over the weekend, KRGV-TV reported. Six of the suspected Zetas were killed and one soldier wounded.

Report: Mexican Officials ID 2 Suspects In Border Pirate Slaying - Denver News Story - KMGH Denver

[Aussiesuede]

Rolando Flores, the commander of state investigators in Ciudad Miguel Aleman who was part of a group investigating the reported shooting of David Hartley, "unfortunately was killed,".

Dennis Hartley, David Hartley's father, expressed shock and regret at Flores' killing.


"I just, I'm in shock about this right now. I really don't have any hope that David will be found. I really hate other people putting their lives at stake. We don't need more sons lost. If this is true, I'm just really heart broken that this happened."

Mexican police investigating shooting found dead | Top AP Stories | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

[GordMay]

Previous incidents:

April 30: Four heavily armed men boarded two boats near the Old Guerrero area and demanded money. After collecting $200 in cash, the bandits tried to follow the U.S. boats as they sped back to U.S. waters. The bandits stopped once they reached the U.S. boundary.

May 6: Two armed men approached a boat near Marker 14 on the north side of Salado Island on top of the ruins at Old Guerrero. The men demanded money, which the fishermen gave them.

May 16: Five armed men boarded a boat on the United States side of the lake near Marker 7. Investigators have no further information on the incident.

Aug 31: Falcon Lake pirates, in a small boat marked “Game Wardin [sic]” in duct-taped letters, attempted to stop a Texas fisherman. The fisherman's knowledge of previous DPS safety warnings about Falcon Lake and the misspelling of "warden" alerted him something was wrong, and he outran the Mexican vessel to safety.