Two Americans in a group of four friends who were kidnapped during a trip to Mexico last week have been found dead.

The group was taken hostage on Friday (3 March) after entering the state of Tamaulipas in Matamoros – an area dominated by the Gulf cartel. The Americans, who had driven from South Carolina, came under fire from a group of armed men and were bundled into the back of a pickup truck.

Tamaulipas Governor Américo Villarreal revealed on a call during a Tuesday morning press conference with Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador that two of the victims had been found dead. Another person was wounded while the fourth was unharmed — they are back in the US, according to the Tamaulipas Attorney General.

The victims were identified by family on Monday as Latavia “Tay” McGee, Shaeed Woodard, Zindell Brown and Eric James Williams, who traveled from South Carolina so one of them could get a tummy tuck medical procedure. It remains unclear who out of those four was killed.

US officials familiar with the investigation told CNN that authorities believe a Mexican cartel mistook the victims for Haitian drug smugglers.

One person has been arrested and the FBI continues to work along with Mexican authorities in the case, Mr. López Obrador said. US officials familiar with the investigation told CNN that authorities believe a Mexican cartel mistook the victims for Haitian drug smugglers.

A social media video appears to show the four friends being loaded into a pickup truck during their abduction, with many of them being dragged limply into the vehicle.