Armed civilians ambushed and detained eight state police Tuesday in Huejuquilla El Alto, a municipality in northern Jalisco, taking their weapons and forcing them to record a video before releasing them.

The police, traveling in two vehicles, were on a routine patrol on the highway to Valparaíso, Zacatecas, when a group of more than 50 armed civilians emerged from the brush and attacked them.

The officers surrendered to the much larger group of attackers.

The latter took 16 weapons, eight bulletproof vests, ammunition and four radios, as well as the officers’ patrol cars, one of which was later found riddled with bullet holes.

The civilians then forced the police to record a cellphone video making statements in defense of criminal activity, state authorities said.

“We categorically reject these statements and emphasize that they were obtained under coercion and threats to the lives of our police,” the Jalisco Public Security Ministry said on Twitter.

The ministry also reported that the eight officers are safe and will cooperate with official investigations into the incident.

With reports from El Universal