7-YEAR-OLD GIRL KILLED IN TAMAULIPAS OPERATION FOLLOWING STATE POLICE HELICOPTER FIRE

MATAMOROS, Mexico — Official investigations remain active in the state of Tamaulipas following a security operation on October 29 along the Matamoros-Reynosa highway, where a seven-year-old child, identified as Aranza Aidelany Pardo, lost her life after a projectile struck the vehicle in which her family was traveling.

According to statements provided by her mother, Claudia Edith Pardo, the family was driving near kilometer 4.5 in the Las Rusias area when they encountered events linked to a security deployment following the arrest of Axel Alfredo "N", a suspect associated with local organized crime operations. The family reported being followed by a security helicopter prior to hearing gunfire. During the event, the minor received a fatal gunshot wound to the head, while her mother sustained a leg injury that required surgical intervention.

The Attorney General of Tamaulipas, Jesus Eduardo Govea Orozco, confirmed key technical findings from the ongoing forensic evaluation. Official ballistics analysis established that the bullet causing the minor's death followed a top-to-bottom trajectory, penetrating the vehicle's bodywork. Authorities identified the ammunition as a 7.62 calibre projectile.

Official statements from the prosecutor's office explicitly ruled out that the specific shot originated from civilian criminal groups on the ground, determining that the operational aircraft overhead belonged to official Mexican security forces. The state authority confirmed that four active-duty members of the Secretariat of Public Security of Tamaulipas were aboard the State Guard helicopter during the event.

"Forensic ballistics tests are continuing in order to determine the specific weapon that fired the shot and establish individual legal responsibilities," official investigation reports indicated.

As of Thursday, November 5, the prosecutor's office confirmed that none of the four officers involved have been detained. In response to the events, the Secretariat of Public Security initiated an internal administrative investigation through its Internal Affairs division. Family members of the victim continue to request a comprehensive investigation from state judicial authorities to establish full legal accountability as the case file remains open.