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A Texas jail guard who was slain over the weekend in a suspected Mexican drug cartel-related massacre had Omaha ties.
Arthur Redelfs, 34, and his pregnant wife, Lesley Enriquez, 35, were chased and gunned down while driving with their baby in the Mexican border town of Ciudad Juarez, the epicenter of that country's deadly drug war.
The couple's child, Rebecca, was left unharmed but wailing in the back seat of the family's sport utility vehicle.
Jennifer Redelfs Hendrickson of Omaha is a cousin to Arthur Redelfs, whose late father, Tim, grew up in Nebraska.
“He has many first cousins and uncles and aunts in the Omaha area,” said Redelfs Hendrickson. “We are deeply saddened.”
She said the family can't speak out yet because of the ongoing investigation.
But Redelfs Hendrickson said her family is working with Walmart to help provide support for her baby cousin, now orphaned. And she has set up an account for donations to be accepted for the child through Paypal to hendricksonjen@gmail.com.
Arthur, his wife and their daughter, all U.S. citizens, were on their way to their El Paso, Texas, home after attending a child's birthday party in Juarez hosted by a U.S. Consulate employee.
Lesley Enriquez worked in the American Citizen Services section of the consulate. She was four months pregnant.
Arthur Redelfs was a detention officer with the El Paso County Sheriff's Office.
The couple's murder along with that of another man who had been at the same party with his two children were particularly stunning because all three adults had connections to the U.S. Consulate, the arm of the U.S. government in Juarez.
Although many U.S. citizens have been killed in drug-related violence in Mexico, it is extremely rare for gunmen to target a U.S. government employee.
The FBI is assisting Mexican officials in the investigation. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said that the Saturday slayings are under investigation and that he had no clear indication of whether the families had been targeted.
This report includes material from the Associated Press.
Contact the writer:
444-1224, cindy.gonzalez@owh.com
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