UPDATE: Shoot-out in the La Mesa district of Tijuana on January 17, 2008

A Mexican Federal police officer died as the result of wounds suffered in the Thursday attack on a drug cartel "safe house" located near "Mercado de Todos" in the 5 y 10 area of Tijuana.

Miguel Cedillo Gachúz, 24, was pronounced dead at the Red Cross Hospital yesterday. A bullet had struck the officer in the head during a shootout with men barricaded inside a large brick house, in Tijuana's La Mesa district.

A three-hour gun battle involved hundreds of Federal, State, Municipal agents, as well as members of the Mexican military. The sicarios fled by running on the roofs of near-by houses while shooting at police helicopters. No nearby residents were injured, but a kindergarten and day-care center were evacuated, and neighbors were left shaken.

Three other heroic police officers were wounded, but are expected to live.

The Baja California Attorney General's Office yesterday issued a statement saying it was continuing to work on identifying six victims, who were found at the scene: gagged, blindfolded and shot in the head. There is speculation that they were kidnap victims.

A suspected thug, who died in the shootout, remained unidentified.

Four other men who were captured at the house have been turned over to Federal organized-crime investigators. One was a Municipal police officer identified as Juan José Díaz. The others are Antonio Martínez Zarzoza, Carlos Alberto Espinoza Vega and Román Gámez Osuna. The latter initially identified himself as a member of the Baja California Ministerial Police, but this apparently is untrue.

Additional information can be seen at URL: http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/mexico/tijuana/20080119-9999-1m19tjshoot.html