Pregnant American teen wounded by Mexican police after car chase near border

A pregnant 14-year-old U.S. citizen was shot and wounded by police in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas after the truck she was in failed to obey police commands to stop.

According to the Tamaulipas state prosecutor’s office, the shooting happened around midnight on Sunday on a Reynosa street near the international bridge leading to Pharr, Texas.

Mexican newspaper El Universal identified the teenager as Indira Michelle Blanco Lopez Gonzalez.

Mexican police officers approached Gonzalez and a male friend who was driving a Chevrolet Silverado outside a convenience store, and reportedly ordered them to stop.

Failing to obey the command, police fired at the truck’s tires to stop the vehicle. When it stopped, the driver ran off and police found Gonzalez with a wound in her stomach.

Gonzalez, who was four months pregnant, was taken to a local hospital for treatment. The prosecutor’s office said neither Gonzalez nor the fetus were in danger of dying, but remain under medical attention.

According to El Universal, Paloma Gonzalez, 37, who identified herself as the teenager’s mother, disputed the police’s report on the incident. She said her daughter was driving the truck and was dropping off her friend Eduardo Berrones, also 14, when police started chasing them before shots were heard.

The incident remains under investigation.

The U.S. Embassy in Mexico said it was aware of reports that an American citizen had been shot in Reynosa, but could not provide further details.

Meanwhile, inquiries continue into the deaths of three American siblings found shot to death outside the nearby city of Matamoros in late October.

The parents of Erica, Alex and Jose Angel Alvarado Rivera of Progreso, Texas, said armed men dressed in uniforms identifying them as "Grupo Hercules," a specialized police unit in Matamoros, took them and Erica's boyfriend from a taco restaurant near the border town of El Control on Oct. 13. Their bodies were found on Oct. 29, in a rural area outside Matamoros.

Grupo Hercules is made up of former soldiers and marines who have been vetted by state police to provide security for city officials and target crime in high-risk areas.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.