MEXICO CITY -- Mexican prosecutors said Saturday they are searching for a gunman who opened fire on an official of the U.S. Consulate in the western city of Guadalajara.

The Attorney General’s Office said Saturday the official was wounded in the attack Friday in Guadalajara -- and the U.S. Consulate said on its Facebook and Twitter pages that the FBI was offering a $20,000 reward for information on the attacker.

Guadalajara is the capital of Jalisco state, which is dominated by the hyper-violent Jalisco New Generation cartel. There was no immediate evidence of any cartel link to the attack.

Surveillance video of the attack shows the gunman following the official in a parking garage. The official, whose name was not released, was dressed in shorts.

The shooting appeared to be a direct attempt to kill the consular employee.

In the video, the attacker doesn’t appear to try to approach the official while he is walking, but instead waits for him to exit the parking garage in his vehicle and fires a round into the car’s windshield.

The U.S. Consulate posted several clips of CCTV video related to the incident on its Facebook page.

Continuación El FBI ofrece una recompensa de $ 20,000 dólares por información que lleve a la identificación del sujeto que disparó a un oficial del Consulado de los Estados Unidos hoy en Guadalajara. Por favor llame a la Embajada de los Estados Unidos en la Ciudad de México si lo reconoce al (01-55) 5080-2000. El video del tirador está disponible en esta página de Facebook Posted by Consulado General de los Estados Unidos en Guadalajara on Friday, January 6, 2017

Guadalajara is Mexico’s second largest city and is not specifically singled out for any special precautions in the latest U.S. travel warning updated on Dec. 8.

The U.S. Embassy in Mexico City said that for privacy reasons no further information would be made available on the victim, including his condition.

“The safety and security of our employees overseas is among our highest priorities,” said an embassy spokeswoman who was not authorized to be quoted by name. “We are working closely with Mexican law enforcement in this matter.”

The Attorney General’s Office said the victim was in “stable” condition and under protection, apparently at a local hospital. The office said the case was being handled by federal detectives. An attack on diplomatic personnel would be considered a federal crime in Mexico.

U.S. consular employees and other U.S. agents have been attacked in Mexico in the past; the attackers have usually argued the attacks were cases of mistaken identity.

In 2014, a Mexican gang leader was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the 2010 slayings in the border city of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, of a U.S. Consulate employee, her husband and the husband of another employee.

Prosecutors said Arturo Gallegos Castrellon was in charge of a team of assassins with the Barrio Azteca, a gang allied with the Juarez drug cartel, and had ordered the three slayings.

The killings of U.S. Consulate employee Leslie Ann Enriquez Catton, her husband, Arthur Redfels, and Alberto Salcido Ceniceros, the husband of another consulate employee, as they left a children’s birthday party were a mistake, former gang members testified during the trial.

Redfels was driving a white SUV that was very similar to a vehicle that Gallegos Castrellon had marked as a target for his team of assassins because they thought it belonged to members of the rival Sinaloa cartel.

In 2012, uniformed police pumped 152 bullets into a U.S. Embassy vehicle carrying two CIA officers and a Mexican navy captain. The police officers, who wounded the Americans and face attempted murder charges, initially said the people they attacked were in uniform and marked cars, and that they had responded to fire from the SUV. But details of the attorney general’s investigation said those attacked were in street clothes, riding in unmarked vehicles (including two of their personal cars) and under order at all times from their commanding officers.

A Mexican drug cartel lieutenant pleaded guilty in 2013 to murder and attempted murder of an officer or employee of the United States in the Feb. 15, 2011, shootings of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

The attackers acknowledged they were members of a Los Zetas Cartel hit squad and directly participated in the attack, which resulted in the death of ICE agent Jaime Zapata and the wounding of his colleague Victor Avila, both based in Texas.

According to court documents, a commander in Los Zetas Cartel tried to hijack the agents’ armored government vehicle as it was driving on Highway 57 in San Luis Potosi. After hit squads forced the vehicle off the road and surrounded it, the Zetas commander ordered the U.S. agents to get out. The agents refused and tried to identify themselves in Spanish as diplomats from the American Embassy, but the hit squad members fired into the vehicle, striking both of them.</s>U.S. consular official shot in Mexico, in stable condition

MEXICO CITY, Jan 7 (Reuters) - An American consular official was shot in Guadalajara, Mexico's second largest city in the restive western state of Jalisco, but is now in stable condition, Mexican authorities said on Saturday.

Mexican federal and state officials are investigating the incident, which occurred on Friday evening, the attorney general's office said in a statement. The U.S. Embassy could not immediately be reached for comment.

Jalisco is one of the engines of the Mexican economy, but the state's southern border turned into a battleground between the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (JNG) and the Michoacan-based Knights Templar.

In May, 2015 JNG gunmen shot down an army helicopter in southwestern Jalisco, claiming the lives of six military personnel. (Reporting by Alexandra Alper; Editing by Chris Reese)</s>U.S. consular official shot in Mexico, in stable condition

MEXICO CITY, Jan 7 (Reuters) - An American consular official was shot in Guadalajara, Mexico's second largest city in the restive western state of Jalisco, but is now in stable condition, Mexican authorities said on Saturday.

Mexican federal and state officials are investigating the incident, which occurred on Friday evening, the attorney general's office said in a statement.

The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation is offering a reward of $20,000 for information that helps identify the shooter, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico said via Twitter.

Jalisco is one of the engines of the Mexican economy, but the state's southern border turned into a battleground between the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (JNG) and the Michoacan-based Knights Templar.

In May, 2015 JNG gunmen shot down an army helicopter in southwestern Jalisco, claiming the lives of six military personnel. (Reporting by Alexandra Alper; Editing by Chris Reese)</s>An American consular official was shot in Guadalajara, Mexico's second largest city in the restive western state of Jalisco, but is now in stable condition, Mexican authorities said on Saturday. Mexican federal and state officials are investigating the incident, which occurred on Friday evening, the attorney general's office said in a statement.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Reuters.</s>Mexico hunts for gunman who shot US consular official

A view of the US consulate in Guadalajara, Mexico. — Picture courtesy of Google MapsGUADALAJARA, Jan 8 — Mexican authorities are on the hunt for a gunman who was disguised as a female nurse when he shot and wounded a US consular official in the city of Guadalajara.

The US consulate in Guadalajara posted a video on Facebook yesterday showing the shooter, dressed in blue and wearing a wig, waiting outside a shopping centre’s garage at 6.20pm on Friday (00:20 GMT Saturday). He then raises his gun and fires at the car before fleeing.

The shooting left a bullet impact on the car window while the US consular official is seen opening his door.

Moments before the shooting video from different cameras showed the official, dressed in shorts and a sleeveless shirt, paying his parking ticket at an automated machine. The gunman is seen following him.

“According to the four videos, it was a direct attack,” Jalisco state attorney general Eduard Almaguer Ramirez said.

The gunman was wearing a wig and a blue nurse uniform, Almaguer said.

The US official, who is in stable condition, interviews visa applicants at the consulate, Almaguer said.

A US government official told AFP on condition of anonymity that the official is a vice consul, adding that no motive for the shooting has been established.

The western city of Guadalajara has been hit by violence perpetrated by the powerful Jalisco New Generation drug cartel in recent years.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation offered a US$20,000 reward for information about the shooter. The FBI is helping with the investigation, Almaguer said.

The Mexican attorney general’s office said it was in contact with the US embassy and consulate in efforts to locate the shooter.

“The safety and security of our employees overseas is among our highest priorities,” the US embassy said in a statement.

“We are working closely with Mexican law enforcement ‎in this matter,” the statement added, saying it would provide more details “due to privacy considerations.”

The embassy issued a security message later yesterday urging US citizens in Guadalajara to “restrict their movements outside their homes and places of work to those truly essential.”

“They should also take care not to fall into predictable patterns for those movements that are essential. They should vary the times and routes of their movements.”

Not the first attack

US officials have faced attacks in Mexico in the past.

In 2010, a consular official, her husband and the spouse of another consular official were killed in two simultaneous attacks in the northern city of Ciudad Juarez, which at the time was considered the world’s murder capital amid an ultra-violent drug war.

An alleged leader of the Barrio Azteca gang was extradited to the United States, where he was sentenced to life in prison for ordering the murder.

A year later, gunmen from the Zetas drug cartel opened fire on a vehicle of two US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in the northern state of San Luis Potosi, killing one of the officers.

In 2012, two US government officials — widely reported to be CIA agents — and a Mexican marine where wounded in 2012 when they were shot at by federal police officers as they were driving in the central state of Morelos.

Fourteen officers were initially accused of attempted murder, but were later put on trial on charges of using excessive force, with officials citing a case of mistaken identity.

And in a case that caused friction between the US and Mexican governments in 1985, undercover US agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena was tortured and killed by the Guadalajara drug cartel. — AFP</s>Mexico hunts for gunman who shot US consular official

GUADALAJARA, Mexico -- Mexican authorities are on the hunt for a gunman who was disguised as a female nurse when he shot and wounded a U.S. consular official in the city of Guadalajara.

The U.S. consulate in Guadalajara posted a video on Facebook Saturday showing the shooter, dressed in blue and wearing a wig, waiting outside a shopping center's garage at 6:20 p.m. on Friday. He then raises his gun and fires at the car before fleeing.

The shooting left a bullet impact on the car window while the U.S. consular official is seen opening his door.

Moments before the shooting video from different cameras showed the official, dressed in shorts and a sleeveless shirt, paying his parking ticket at an automated machine. The gunman is seen following him.

"According to the four videos, it was a direct attack," Jalisco state attorney general Eduard Almaguer Ramirez said.

The gunman was wearing a wig and a blue nurse uniform, Almaguer said.

The U.S. official, who is in stable condition, interviews visa applicants at the consulate, Almaguer said.

A U.S. government official told AFP on condition of anonymity that the official is a vice consul, adding that no motive for the shooting has been established.

The western city of Guadalajara has been hit by violence perpetrated by the powerful Jalisco New Generation drug cartel in recent years.

The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation offered a US$20,000 reward for information about the shooter. The FBI is helping with the investigation, Almaguer said.

The Mexican attorney general's office said it was in contact with the U.S. embassy and consulate in efforts to locate the shooter.

"The safety and security of our employees overseas is among our highest priorities," the U.S. embassy said in a statement.

"We are working closely with Mexican law enforcement in this matter," the statement added, saying it would provide more details "due to privacy considerations."

The embassy issued a security message later Saturday urging U.S. citizens in Guadalajara to "restrict their movements outside their homes and places of work to those truly essential."

"They should also take care not to fall into predictable patterns for those movements that are essential. They should vary the times and routes of their movements."</s>American and Mexican authorities have arrested the man believed to be responsible for the nonfatal shooting of an American consular official in the western city of Guadalajara.

“The detention of the aggressor against the consular agent has been achieved,” said Eduardo Almaguer, attorney general in the state of Jalisco, where Guadalajara is located, on Sunday morning. “The suspect has been handed over to Mexico’s federal attorney general’s office.”</s>American and Mexican authorities have arrested the man believed to be responsible for the nonfatal shooting of an American consular official in the western city of Guadalajara.

“The detention of the aggressor against the consular agent has been achieved,” said Eduardo Almaguer, attorney general in the state of Jalisco, where Guadalajara is located, on Sunday morning. “The suspect has been handed over to Mexico’s federal attorney general’s office.”

He did not provide any further details but a source within the Guadalajara police force, who spoke on condition of anonymity, identified the suspect as Zafar Zia, a 31-year-old US citizen of Indian origin.

The source said Zia was captured in a joint operation by the FBI, DEA and Jalisco state officials in Guadalajara’s affluent Providencia neighbourhood early on Sunday morning. The suspect had a .380 caliber pistol tucked into his waistband when he was arrested. The authorities also seized a Honda Accord with California license plates, a wig and sunglasses that may match those seen in footage of the shooting, and 16 ziplock bags containing 336 grams of a substance believed to be marijuana.

Hours after the shooting on Friday night, the US consulate in Guadalajara posted video footage and still images of the suspect from CCTV cameras. The FBI offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to the identification of the shooter.

The consulate declined to name the victim due to “privacy considerations” but local police sources identified him as Christopher Ashcraft, a foreign service officer at the State Department who had been stationed in Guadalajara since June 2015.

A friend of Ashcraft, who was shot once in the chest as he was leaving a local gym, told the Washington Post that he was recovering well at a hospital in Guadalajara and planned to return to the United States for a time. Ashcraft “had no idea what happened,” the friend said, but thought that the shooting “wasn’t random”.

There has been no indication as to the motive for the shooting, but Guadalajara is a known bastion of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of Mexico’s most powerful and violent drug gangs. The cartel has been blamed for the assassination of dozens of Mexican officials and police officers in recent years but direct attacks on US officials are less common.

In the wake of the shooting, the US embassy in Mexico issued the following advice: “US citizens in the Guadalajara area are urged to restrict their movements outside their homes and places of work to those truly essential. They should also take care not to fall into predictable patterns for those movements that are essential. They should vary the times and routes of their movements.”</s>A U.S. consular official in the Mexican city of Guadalajara was shot by a gunman but was in stable condition, Mexican authorities said on Saturday, prompting the FBI to offer a reward for information.

The victim was attacked on Friday evening in Mexico's second largest city, in the often violent western state of Jalisco, according to Mexico's Attorney General and the U.S. embassy.

The official was shot in the chest, said a source familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity.

A Mexican security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the victim was named Christopher Ashcraft.

The embassy said that it is working closely with Mexican law enforcement on the matter. The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation is offering a reward of $20,000 for information that helps to identify the shooter.

"The safety and security of our employees overseas is among our highest priorities," said an embassy spokesperson who declined to be identified.

A video posted online by the consulate in Guadalajara shows the shooter appearing to wait for the official's car to pull up to a car park barrier before shooting directly at the driver and running away.

Jalisco is one of the engines of the Mexican economy, but the state's southern border turned into a battleground between rival drug cartels - the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (JNG) and the Michoacan-based Knights Templar.

In May, 2015 JNG gunmen shot down an army helicopter in southwestern Jalisco, claiming the lives of six military personnel.</s>Mexican agents arrest suspect in shooting of U.S. consular official

MEXICO CITY, Jan 8 (Reuters) - A suspect in the shooting of a U.S. consular official in the Mexican city of Guadalajara was arrested on Sunday, the state prosecutor's office said.

The Jalisco state prosecutor said on Twitter that special agents made the arrest, but did not provide further details including the name of the suspect or any motive.

The consular official, later identified by a Mexican security official speaking on condition of anonymity as Christopher Ashcraft, was shot by a gunman on Friday as he was leaving a city parking lot.

A video posted online by the consulate in Guadalajara shows the shooter appearing to wait for the official's car to pull up to a parking lot barrier before shooting directly at the driver and then fleeing.

Ashcraft was in stable condition at a local hospital. A source told Reuters he had been shot in the chest.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry thanked the Mexican government for the "swift and decisive arrest of a suspect in the heinous attack against our Foreign Service Officer colleague in Guadalajara, Mexico," according to a statement on Sunday.

The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation had offered a reward of $20,000 for information that helped to identify the shooter.

Guadalajara is Mexico's second largest city, and parts of surrounding Jalisco state have often been the scene of violence by rival drug gangs. (Reporting by David Alire Garcia; Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu in Washington; Editing by Mary Milliken and Jeffrey Benkoe)
Mexican police search for a gunman who shot and wounded a U.S. Consular official in Guadalajara, Jalisco. The victim is in stable condition.