A Chicago teen is fighting for his life after a shooting claimed the lives of multiple family members during a trip to Mexico.
According to the 14-year-old’s grandmother, he was in Durango to celebrate his birthday when gunmen attacked him and his family.
According to police, 38-year-old Vicente Peña Jr. and 44-year-old Antonio “Tony” Fernandez, both from Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood, were killed in the attack, along with 22-year-old Jorge Eduardo Vargas Aguirre.
The 14-year-old was also injured in the shooting, and remains hospitalized in Mexico this weekend. His family is working to try to get him back to the Chicago area for more treatment, and is pleading with authorities for answers on how the shooting unfolded.
The nonprofit group United Giving Hope is helping the family with their efforts to bring the boy back to the United States for lifesaving treatment.
The men’s bodies were found Friday along the Francisco Zarco Highway in Santiago Papasquiaro, according to Durango officials. According to officials, the group was traveling in an SUV with Illinois license plates when they were attacked in what officials are describing as a surge in violent crime in the area.
Details on the shooting remain scarce, with officials unable to confirm how the attack unfolded and what may have led to the incident.
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"We want justice," the teen's aunt, Julissa Tecumulapa, stated. "It's really unexpected to happen."
The U.S. State Department has previously issued travel warnings for Durango, asking residents to “exercise increased caution due to” gang-related crime.
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