POLICE CHIEF'S ASSASSINATION SHOCKS TIJUANA

Ambush: Border Town's Recent History Filled With Slayings, Corruption.

TIJUANA, Mexico -- In the latest example of the murderous violence that has
gripped this border town, the municipal police chief was assassinated
Sunday morning by gunmen who sprayed his sport utility vehicle with more
than 100 bullets, authorities said.

Municipal Police Chief Alfredo de la Torre Marquez, 50, was driving alone
to his office after attending Mass when three cars came alongside his GMC
Suburban and gunmen opened fire with at least one AK-47 assault rifle and a
9mm handgun.

Dozens of police, judges, prosecutors and others have been slain in Tijuana
and its suburbs in recent years, a violence spiral linked to wars between
competing drug cartels. A presidential candidate of the ruling PRI party
was assassinated in Tijuana in March 1994.

Police said they have no suspects although three ``suspicious'' cars were
seized in two nearby neighborhoods. One of the cars had been reported
stolen in Chula Vista.

In recent months, officers under de la Torre's command have been conducting
a crackdown on illegal-immigrant smugglers and small-time drug users and
pushers, particularly in the Zona Norte, an area near the border known for
prostitution, drugs and other criminal activities.

In a city with a long history of police corruption, de la Torre, a career
law enforcement officer who took over as chief in December 1998, was known
for professionalism and honesty.

Tijuana Mayor Francisco Vega de la Madrid expressed his ``shock and
dismay'' at the brazen murder and promised that city police would assist
state police, who have jurisdiction in the case, to find the killers. De la
Madrid also called for residents of Tijuana to remain calm despite a
growing sense of anarchy in his city.

Even in a city where violence is common, the slaying of a police chief was
shocking. ``I'm afraid of what is happening to my city,'' said waitress
Rosario Barrios.

Many in Tijuana said state authorities have been unable or unwilling to
gain the upper hand over crime. Jesus Blancornelas, editor of the
independent Tijuana weekly Zeta, said Sunday that the state police are
``powerless or incapable'' in the battle against crime. Blancornelas was
the target of a failed assassination attempt by drug traffickers in 1997.

De la Torre normally was protected by bodyguards except on Sunday, which he
reserved as a day for his family, officials said. In the back seat of de la
Torre's vehicle were the bodyguards' two M-16 automatic rifles.

Police officers fanned out across the city to interrogate numerous people
in search of information. One official said that nearly three dozen people
were questioned but no arrests were made.

The killers reportedly used a classic pincers maneuver, with one car moving
in front of de la Torre's vehicle to slow him down and then two other cars
driving parallel to the Suburban, which had tinted windows for security.

The assailants shot out all three windows on the driver's side, a window on
the passenger's side and left the windshield riddled with bullet holes. The
Suburban smashed into a tree.

The municipal chief's force, which has about 1,200 officers, is responsible
for issuing traffic citations and patrolling the sprawling city, whose
population may be more than 2 million.

Most felony investigations, including large-scale crimes, are dealt with by
the state and federal police.