A confrontation between security forces and armed civilians in Tlaquepaque, Jalisco, on Friday left nine people dead, including two police officers.

The confrontation occurred as officers from the state Attorney General’s Office carried out an operation related to stolen vehicles. Officers Jorge Omar Valdez Hermosillo and Miguel Medrano were among those who lost their lives in the gunfight.

Police discovered that the house where the fighting occurred was used to hold kidnapping victims, several of whom were on the property at the time. Six people were found dead after the fighting.

Another woman who was in the neighborhood to visit her daughter died in the crossfire.

Four civilians, presumably kidnapping victims, and a police officer were reported wounded.

Municipal police officers secured a broad perimeter around the house where the events occurred.

Teachers at a nearby daycare said that they told the children to get on the floor when they heard the gunshots. They helped maintain calm by telling the children that the noises were just fireworks for a religious ceremony.

Source: El Financiero (sp)