A Vice Admiral with the Mexican Navy was one of two service members gunned down by suspect drug gang members in an ambush in western Michoacan state.

The second person killed was not identified but is assumed to be a bodyguard of Vice Admiral Carlos Miguel Salazar Ramonet.  They were traveling in a single vehicle down a rural road to a Navy base at Puerto Vallarta when gunmen ambushed then, opening fire on the Chevrolet Suburban truck.  Salazar’s wife was also injured.

Salazar is being remembered as an exemplary officer and the Navy is generally seen as the least-corrupted institution in the troubled Central American nation, overrun by drug gang violence.  He often stepped forward to help on social issues, including opening hospitals.

The three suspects were reportedly to be transferred to Federal authorities in Mexico City, away from violence and corruption plaguing Michoacan.