Mexico is vowing to bring justice to the criminals responsible for a heinous scene over the weekend.
American consulate employee Leslie Enriques and her husband Arthur Redelfs, both U.S. citizens, were driving through the city of Juarez Saturday when they were gunned down in broad daylight. The couple's baby who was sitting in the back seat was left untouched.
The brutal murder took place just minutes after the husband of another consulate worker was killed, his two children wounded. All three people had attended the same social gathering before the attacks.
Authorities suspect a drug cartel carried out the crimes but offered no motive. Drug gang violence has made Juarez one of the deadliest cities in the world. Last year alone, more than 2,500 people were murdered.
President Obama quickly condemned Saturday's killings. The recent wave of violence also prompted the State Department to authorize government employees to send their family members out of some parts of Mexico.
The deaths of the three people with ties to the American consulate occurred during an especially bloody weekend in Mexico. Roughly 50 people were killed in apparent gang violence. More than half died in the tourist hot spot of Acapulco, four of them beheaded.
Since President Felipe Calderon declared war on the cartels in 2006, nearly 19,000 people have died in drug violence. Many of those have been rival drug traffickers and police but the fear now is as violence continues to escalate, so will the number of innocent victims.
The State Department says if you must continue on your trip to Mexico - take precaution. It offers some travel advice:
Avoid unfamiliar areas. Be aware of your surroundings at ALL times. In the last few years, kidnapping cases have gone up and many of them are still unsolved.
Stay on main roads and travel during the daytime. Also try to take toll roads, which are generally more secure.
Leave your itinerary with a family member or close friend back here in the United States. That way, someone will know where you are at all times, should something happen.
Check with your cell phone service provider to make sure you'll have service where you're going.
Leave valuable items at home. Thieves target jewelry, large amounts of money, even satellite radios and GPS devices.
For travel information, call 888-407-4747 or visit http://travel.state.gov
