Mexican Drug Cartel Reportedly Apologizes for Killing Kidnapped Americans

According to a letter exclusively obtained by the Associated Press on condition of anonymity, the Scorpions faction of the Gulf Cartel apologized to the residents of Matamoros, the Mexican woman who died in the shooting and the four kidnapped Americans and their families.

Mexico's Gulf Cartel reportedly issued an apology for the recent fallout after four Americans were kidnapped last week, adding that the criminal syndicate would be turning over its members responsible for the armed abduction.

"We have decided to turn over those who were directly involved and responsible in the events, who at all times acted under their own decision-making and lack of discipline," the letter reads, adding that mentioned individuals had gone against the cartel's rules regarding "respecting the life and well-being of the innocent."

Attached to the letter was a photograph of five bound men lying face down on the ground. This photo was also shared on condition of anonymity because the source was not authorized to share it.

State officials of Tamaulipas, which is a Gulf Cartel base, did not report any new detainees. However, security officials with a separate division did come upon the detention of five wanted individuals. The quintet was found in one of the vehicles police had been searching - in fact, in the same place the letter was found.

Local media outlets have noted that drug cartels do use such correspondence methods to explain certain situations, as well as voicing threats to competitors and state authorities.

The armed kidnapping unfolded last week when four Americans Eric Williams, Latavia McGee, Zindell Brown and Shaeed Woodard arrived in Mexico's Matamoros to accompany McGee so that she could undergo a gluteal augmentation.

Fellow friend Cheryl Orange, who stayed behind in Texas, would later report the group missing after they did not meet at the agreed location on time. Orange herself stayed in the group's Brownsville hotel room in Texas because she had lost her ID and could not cross the border.

Four days later, authorities found the missing individuals on the outskirts of the city under the supervision of one man who had been marked for arrest. Of the four Americans, two were killed, one was wounded, and one was unharmed.