I was just outside of Sonoyta on the highway to Rocky Point when 2 or 3 cop cars, plus a army truck whizzed past me at high speed coming from Sonoyta. I did not see them again until we hit Rocky Point. At the place on the way out of town where the army checkpoint used to be.
What seemed unusual was, it looked like a barricade. There were piles of cop cars, both the army and the cops were armed to the teeth, with automatic weapons lots of guys there. It looked like they were waiting for someone. it's the first time I have seen cops heavily armed as well as the army.
Over the many years, we have seen a couple incidents of similar drama. It does leave you wondering, when you witness it, what the story is. But in any case, they are apparently "on it," which is what counts.
We heard the helicopters around 6:00 am, then some sporatic gunfire near The Hut. In a few minutes the helicopter gunship began unleashing a barrage of fire as I opened our back door to see what was going on. The bullets were richocheting off the ground and flying towards the Sonoran Spa. Needless to say I retreated back inside! This went on for over an hour - with sporatic automatic weapon fire and the gunship firing several more times along the road towards Cholla Bay.
When the gatling gun fired it did sound like a war zone - it was loud enough to set off car alarms in the parking lot!
We we startled awake at 515 with gun fire and flash bangs at one of the villas here. It seems to have started here a Bella sirena. It went on for 2 hours. There are multiple federalies and police still searching the grounds. On the grounds and the road directly in front of the gates which are all bent up are multiple shot up vehicles. When the helo was shooting on the road just outside, my heart skipped a beat. We live here with our 10 year old. As I am writing this three more guns shots.
So, there had been more than three. The military came in a bout 20 min. Ago looked like they were clearing the area. My guess is, the area wasn't clear.
So someone just shot at the military...... Out of one of the villas. No one got hit. The have police/military stationed on some of our balconies, you can see their guns poking out of the railings on the C building.
So someone just shot at the military...... Out of one of the villas. No one got hit. The have police/military stationed on some of our balconies, you can see their guns poking out of the railings on the C building.
Scary situation, stay safe and we all hope this gets over soon!
Looks likes they may have stormed in on the villas after a huge flash bang. We can't see really well. The villas The action is taking place is the villas on the left if you are standing at the pool bar looking at the beach.
I hate to be the grim reaper, guys, but I'm back, looking for witnesses to exactly what happened. Feel free to direct message me, email me at [email protected] or phone me at 520-349-5432. You can also feel free to send me a la chingada, but you can't deny this sounds like news!
Besides the choppers there is a fixed wing plane doing passes back and forth - the choppers are staying low (one just went over again) and one landed for a short time on the sand by the docks. Just saw a truck full of federalis drive by with their guns up at the ready. Saw someone try to leave the Spa but the guard wouldn't let them drive out - but now the guards have abandoned the gate (don't blame them).
Besides the choppers there is a fixed wing plane doing passes back and forth - the choppers are staying low (one just went over again) and one landed for a short time on the sand by the docks. Just saw a truck full of federalis drive by with their guns up at the ready. Saw someone try to leave the Spa but the guard wouldn't let them drive out - but now the guards have abandoned the gate (don't blame them).
An absolutely unreal experience. Whoever they were going after must have had a tremendous amount of power. A gun battle in such an area is all but unheard of...especially if initiated by the authorities. To actually see a helicopter gunship firing into a dense residential area will haunt many for a very long time.
An absolutely unreal experience. Whoever they were going after must have had a tremendous amount of power. A gun battle in such an area is all but unheard of...especially if initiated by the authorities. To actually see a helicopter gunship firing into a dense residential area will haunt many for a very long time.
It will be interesting to see what this is all about.
We are now on our balconies and can see the bullet holes in the walls and in a few of the "bad guys" cars. We are still not allowed out of our condo. We are watching them go through the cars and and the villa where it all started. There are still a few people posted with guns around the complex.
There must be one tough crackdown going on. This is, by my count the fourth shootout since I left on
November 20th. Hopefully this is the Grande Finale and we can all relax. I'm still coming down whenever I am able.
These punks aren't going to ruin it for me and I hope it doesn't for others. Stay safe my friends.
We were suppose to meet some friends at Coffee Point. We sent them an email saying we weren't going to make it and why. They called us from Coffeepoint and stated there is no buzz about it in town.
We were just told to get off the balcony and get back inside.
Sorry, Todd. You know I'm a cheerleader with the best of them, but this is different. It will not stop me from going, but gunships/helicopters do not fire on residential neighborhoods in the US. That was a HUGE mistake on the part of the military/federales as far as I'm concerned. Yes, we have gun situations here in the states where neighborhoods get barricaded, but the authorities do not fire down onto the neighborhoods. They send in SWAT teams. Why they had to fire out of the helicopters I will never understand. That was the stake in the heart of our beach town.
This in az news....seems odd a police chase of car lead to the mass attack.
Three people were killed in a shootout involving government officials this morning near Rocky Point's Sandy Beach area in Rocky Point, the Sonora newspaper El Imparcial is reporting.Sonora state police say the incident started after a chase of a man driving a white Chevrolet pick up truck with California license plates Tuesday night in Sonoyta, the border town near the border crossing at Lukeville.The police caught up to the vehicle on the Puerto Peñasco – Sonoyta highway at kilometer 85 when the passengers started shooting at the police, the newspaper reported, leading to a chase all the way to Miramar, in the popular tourist area of Sandy Beach. Two of the people killed were identified as Pablo Gómez Dominguez, 25, from Ahome, Sinaloa and Julio César Martínez Aguilar, 29, from Chihuahua, Chihuahua. The third person has not been identified. Police found two assault weapons, a bullet proof vest and a radio, El Imparcial reported.An American man who lives in the Esmeralda Resort complex on Sandy Beach told the Star today that he was awakened at about 4:30 or 5 a.m. by the sound of gunfire. It intensified and moved toward him, the man said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he is scared for his family's security. "I’m hearing gun fire and helicopters in the distance. It got closer and closer and closer. I looked back at the condos (further up Sandy Beach) from my front door. I look down the beach and see a helicopter firing into the resort area by Bella Sirena," he said. The gunfire went on for hours, and the man says he saw the helicopter firing what looked like tracers at the Bella Sirena resort.
The car/truck chase with the three guys killed was the one in November. The last half of the article was from today.
They may be connected, but different time frames.
An American man who lives in the Esmeralda Resort complex on Sandy Beach told the Star today that he was awakened at about 4:30 or 5 a.m. by the sound of gunfire. It intensified and moved toward him, the man said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he is scared for his family's security. "I’m hearing gun fire and helicopters in the distance. It got closer and closer and closer. I looked back at the condos (further up Sandy Beach) from my front door. I look down the beach and see a helicopter firing into the resort area by Bella Sirena," he said. The gunfire went on for hours, and the man says he saw the helicopter firing what looked like tracers at the Bella Sirena resort.
so much for anonymous when the az news story pretty much quotes what you said on this public forum. You should have said you were in a different complex.
Good thing this wasn't during a Holiday weekend.
I see your point Melissa. I had an indecent in my neighborhood several years ago involving a home invasion. No choppers.
But we are talking about Mexico. They have a different way of doing things......just as other foreign countries.
Not having all the info yet...this may be the normal procedure for them., Scary as it may seem.
Guess my Feb trip will include a flak jacket and some PPD's ;)
Gotta try and keep positive. Keep your eyes on the tele tonight.
The person's name is entirely irrelevant here whether it was the guy you mentioned or not. I STRONGLY suggest that the administrator of this forum immediately delete Dry Heat's post!
He put his own name out there! Took him 2 second to dial Tim Stellar's phone number in Tucson!
Good thing this wasn't during a Holiday weekend.
I see your point Melissa. I had an indecent in my neighborhood several years ago involving a home invasion. No choppers.
But we are talking about Mexico. They have a different way of doing things......just as other foreign countries.
Not having all the info yet...this may be the normal procedure for them., Scary as it may seem.
Guess my Feb trip will include a flak jacket and some PPD's ;)
Gotta try and keep positive. Keep your eyes on the tele tonight.
But you can't tell people with families that, hey, it's Mexico, they do things different there and still expect them to bring their children to a place for vacation where they can get fired on from helicopters above. That's a total game changer for the average American family.
The chance of civilian casualties here should have dictated strategy and action. You do NOT take helicopter gunships and fire into residential communities. Unless, of course, you're Syria, Afghanistan, or other third world warzone. Once this hits the mainstream media, it's not going to be good for Rocky Point no matter how they try to spin it. This is dangerous stuff and a level of escalation that should concern anyone visiting Rocky Point -- suddenly it's way too easy to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
But you can't tell people with families that, hey, it's Mexico, they do things different there and still expect them to bring their children to a place for vacation where they can get fired on from helicopters above. That's a total game changer for the average American family.
I agree with you. It will be up to the individual to decide if its safe for them or not.
What I meant was that the local citizens may think that this not so out of the ordinary. Scary just the same.....they may feel like it was a big deal but a justified action towards the criminal. It will be interesting to see how our media here reports about as more info comes in
Thanks for the on site info. Please keep it up. Word on the street is that some of the shooters are on the loose. They had kidnapped a Doctor who has been released.
This is incident #4 in just a couple of weeks. Not good, not good. I would suggest to stay away from Penasco until the dust settles here.
Sex, drugs, killings and corruption are what the news media feeds off of, to give us the news.
It will be a hit on tourism for the near term.
I just hope it gets resolved quickly and the news goes on to the next story sooner than later.
I will still go down next week and next year multiple trips with my family.
With all this military brought in does it not seem like they were prepared for it or tipped off. Or is this amount of military always close by? Just seems like there had to be someone big at bella sirena.
With all this military brought in does it not seem like they were prepared for it or tipped off. Or is this amount of military always close by? Just seems like there had to be someone big at bella sirena.
That's what I'm sayin' How close is the military base to Sandy Beach. Some tanks are fast... but holy crap
I just spoke with my friend in Cholla, the road from the resorts to Cholla is closed and the burnt out truck in the picture was stolen from Cholla yesterday.
We all have opinions based on what we “think” we know so can we just stick to the facts. This is a very important situation for many of us so please take the school yard back and forth somewhere else.
4 people killed reported. Here is the picture from El Imparcial, sadly there are 2 victims in the pic.
I think this is the
brokenwave said:
4 people killed reported. Here is the picture from El Imparcial, sadly there are 2 victims in the pic.
I may have seen this SUV yesterday in Sonoyta. He passed me on the inside just where you turn for Rocky Point. He seemed to be in a hurry. Shortly after the cops passed me, maybe chasing him.
The chance of civilian casualties here should have dictated strategy and action. You do NOT take helicopter gunships and fire into residential communities. Unless, of course, you're Syria, Afghanistan, or other third world warzone. Once this hits the mainstream media, it's not going to be good for Rocky Point no matter how they try to spin it. This is dangerous stuff and a level of escalation that should concern anyone visiting Rocky Point -- suddenly it's way too easy to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
I agree. From a media standpoint, a bad-guy incident in a usually peaceful town is one thing. Responding by turning it into a war zone is another.
The chance of civilian casualties here should have dictated strategy and action. You do NOT take helicopter gunships and fire into residential communities. Unless, of course, you're Syria, Afghanistan, or other third world warzone. Once this hits the mainstream media, it's not going to be good for Rocky Point no matter how they try to spin it. This is dangerous stuff and a level of escalation that should concern anyone visiting Rocky Point -- suddenly it's way too easy to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Well said. I completely agree. I'm still going, but I don't expect many other people to be going down there anytime soon. Big mistake on the part of the authorities and how they handled it.
Why is it bad for a witness of a news event to tell a news reporter about that event? The "keep-it-in-the-family" attitude does not work out well in the long run. You can ask the Catholic Church.
Why is it bad for a witness of a news event to tell a news reporter about that event? The "keep-it-in-the-family" attitude does not work out well in the long run. You can ask the Catholic Church.
It's not bad, it's the ridiculous "anonymous" part, when the same report was posted on a public forum verbatim. I'm not saying keep it in the family. It was/is going to get out and there's nothing anyone can do to stop it. It's also the speed of the reporting - the "I can't wait to be the first one to tell it" mentality that someone needs to overcompensate for their obvious lack of self esteem.
I just emailed a friend who works at a PR firm as to how he would handle the blow back (he is familiar with rocky point). He said that the best way penasco could handle this issue is to turn it into the military should have handled it differently. Basically they knew bad guys were in town and they came in to capture them, when the event escalated into a fire fight, the military may have over reacted in how they handled the issue (ex. firing into residential areas). If the issue is addressed as they will learn from this and make adjustments moving forward, the public may move on. The focus needs to be on that the military may have made a mistake in how they handled it rather than a focus on the bad guys. for what it's worth since we are all in this together.
The news I have - hearsay of course, is that there were some big time narcos renting a house in Bella Sirena and they came in to take them out. Everyone supposedly knew they were there. That being said, it changes absolutely nothing. I still think a tactical SWAT team is better than firing on the resort from above.
From what we saw, and believe me, I have a front row seat, I would believe that story. When the noise started I ran out, the gates we blocked and I could see gunfire from the villas. Later the gates were smashed open, and that is when I saw a minivan leave while people were shooting out the back and sides. There is a white SUV with bullet holes on road. There are other vehicles by the villas banged up too.
There is a huge military presence here now, more than even before.
It's not bad, it's the ridiculous "anonymous" part, when the same report was posted on a public forum verbatim. I'm not saying keep it in the family. It was/is going to get out and there's nothing anyone can do to stop it. It's also the speed of the reporting - the "I can't wait to be the first one to tell it" mentality that someone needs to overcompensate for their obvious lack of self esteem.
Unfortunately, I don't think the military has a PR department. But yes, that's what they should say. They also might add that they would have never handled the situation that way during the high tourist season.
Unless the lady on the balcony is known to be very familiar with military vehicles, I'd be skeptical about the tanks.
Me, too. Some armored vehicles perhaps. Heck, I've seen those sitting next to Capone's before and talked with the soldiers, but not full-fledged tanks.
When I flew into Penasco on the way to Mazatlan over Thanksgiving, there are indeed two helicopter gunships and a fixed wing small aircraft, along with a complete military contingent and pilots stationed at the new International airport. Wouldn't take them much time at all to be on the scene anywhere in Penasco.
Very true, Todd. The condo was never about making money and you can't put a price on personal paradise. I will still be the old lady sitting on my balcony with a Corona.
Yes as Mondone reported, it was the Lead Story on 12 news. They will be following it through the day. I am seeing a snowball starting
Just wait until the next report that states it occurred nearby where the home port construction just started. That should bode well for the cruise lines.:rolleyes:
Just wait until the next report that states it occurred nearby where the home port construction just started. That should bode well for the cruise lines.:rolleyes:
Forget the home port. That is going the way of BoomerFest.
"An absolutely unreal experience. Whoever they were going after must have had a tremendous amount of power. A gun battle in such an area is all but unheard of...especially if initiated by the authorities. To actually see a helicopter gunship firing into a dense residential area will haunt many for a very long time." SAID THIS AT 10:18
"An absolutely unreal experience,” said Stephen Heisler. "Whoever they were going after must have had a tremendous amount of power . . . To actually see a helicopter gunship firing into a dense residential area will haunt many for a very long time."
EXACT SAME QUOTE ON AZSTAR A SHORT TIME LATER
Do I need attention? I'm on iTunes Radio five days a week talking about hockey and write a daily article that gets 3M+ views a year. I have all the attention needed.
From our perspective this does change our feeling about this 'little slice of paradise' - when I first awoke I thought it was fireworks from a party that went late in our complex. I went out our door and heard the chopper but couldn't see it (they had no lights on) - then the gatling gun revved up and fired towards the beach it what looked like the area near the Hut - with tracers richocheting off the ground and flying towards the Spa. I'm still in shock - I thought I was finished.
This is the closest I can find to the sound and visuals - the fact this went on for another hour or two with sporadic other gunfire for almost five hours will remain a memory for a long time.
We can't even leave - they aren't allowing anyone out right now.
From our perspective this does change our feeling about this 'little slice of paradise' - when I first awoke I thought it was fireworks from a party that went late in our complex. I went out our door and heard the chopper but couldn't see it (they had no lights on) - then the gatling gun revved up and fired towards the beach it what looked like the area near the Hut - with tracers richocheting off the ground and flying towards the Spa. I'm still in shock - I thought I was finished.
This is the closest I can find to the sound and visuals - the fact this went on for another hour or two with sporadic other gunfire for almost five hours will remain a memory for a long time.
We can't even leave - they aren't allowing anyone out right now.
a bit of humor to this.... When I went AzCentral.com to get channel 12 news, this was banner for me.
Probably due to my many searches on Google for lodging in PP
