CULIACAN, Mexico (AP) — A 20-year-old state beauty queen died in a gun battle between soldiers and the alleged gang of drug traffickers she was traveling with in a scene befitting the hit movie "Miss Bala," or "Miss Bullet," about Mexico's not uncommon ties between narcos and beautiful pageant contestants.

The body of Maria Susana Flores Gamez was found Saturday lying near an assault rifle on a rural road in a mountainous area of the drug-plagued state of Sinaloa, the chief state prosecutor said Monday. It was unclear if she had used the weapon.

"She was with the gang of criminals, but we cannot say whether she participated in the shootout," state prosecutor Marco Antonio Higuera said. "That's what we're going to have to investigate."

The slender, 5-foot-7-inch brunette was voted the 2012 Woman of Sinaloa in a beauty pageant in February. In June, the model competed with other seven contestants for the more prestigious state beauty contest, Our Beauty Sinaloa, but didn't win. The Our Beauty state winners compete for the Miss Mexico title, whose holder represents the country in the international Miss Universe.

Higuera said Flores Gamez was traveling in one of the vehicles that engaged soldiers in an hours-long chase and running gun battle on Saturday near her native city of Guamuchil in the state of Sinaloa, home to Mexico's most powerful drug cartel. Higuera said two other members of the drug gang were killed and four were detained.

The shootout began when the gunmen opened fire on a Mexican army patrol. Soldiers gave chase and cornered the gang at a safe house in the town of Mocorito. The other men escaped, and the gunbattle continued along a nearby roadway, where the gang's vehicles were eventually stopped. Six vehicles, drugs and weapons were seized following the confrontation.

It was at least the third instance in which a beauty queen or pageant contestants have been linked to Mexico's violent drug gangs, a theme so common it was the subject of a critically acclaimed 2011 movie.

In "Miss Bala," Mexico's official submission to the Best Foreign Language Film category of this year's Academy Awards, a young woman competing for Miss Baja California becomes an unwilling participant in a drug-running ring, finally getting arrested for deeds she was forced into performing.

In real life, former Miss Sinaloa Laura Zuniga was stripped of her 2008 crown in the Hispanoamerican Queen pageant after she was detained on suspicion of drug and weapons violations. She was later released without charges.

Zuniga was detained in western Mexico in late 2010 along with seven men, some of them suspected drug traffickers. Authorities found a large stash of weapons, ammunition and $53,300 with them inside a vehicle.

In 2011, a Colombian former model and pageant contestant was detained along with Jose Jorge Balderas, an accused drug trafficker and suspect in the 2010 bar shooting of Salvador Cabanas, a former star for Paraguay's national football team and Mexico's Club America. She was also later released.

Higuera said Flores Gamez's body has been turned over to relatives for burial.

"This is a sad situation," Higuera told a local radio station. She had been enrolled in media courses at a local university, and had been modeling and in pageants since at least 2009.

Javier Valdez, the author of a 2009 book about narco ties to beauty pageants entitled "Miss Narco," said "this is a recurrent story."

"There is a relationship, sometimes pleasant and sometimes tragic, between organized crime and the beauty queens, the pageants, the beauty industry itself," Valdez said.

"It is a question of privilege, power, money, but also a question of need," said Valdez. "For a lot of these young women, it is easy to get involved with organized crime, in a country that doesn't offer many opportunities for young people."

Sometimes drug traffickers seek out beauty queens, but sometimes the models themselves look for narco boyfriends, Valdez said.

"I once wrote about a girl I knew of who was desperate to get a narco boyfriend," he said. "She practically took out a classified ad saying 'Looking for a Narco'."

The stories seldom end well. In the best of cases, a beautiful woman with a tear-stained face is marched before the press in handcuffs. In the worst of cases, they simply disappear.

"They are disposable objects, the lowest link in the chain of criminal organizations, the young men recruited as gunmen and the pretty young women who are tossed away in two or three years, or are turned into police or killed," Valdez said.


Source: http://m.yahoo.com/w/legobpengine/news/mexican-beauty-queen-killed-shootout-203944060.html?orig_host_hdr=news.yahoo.com&.intl=US&.lang=en-US

Wow
Shocking news she's really pretty

Awwww RiP slimmy

This ain't new in mexico another corrupt country with little difference from 9ja.

When you prefer a gangster boyfriend than a cool headed guy.RIP madam beauty pageant.

Amigos y gringos han convertido a México en una ciudad con sangre.
Han matado a la hermosa rosa de México Maria Susana Flores Gámez.

Tekzyflex: When you prefer a gangster boyfriend than a cool headed guy.RIP madam beauty pageant.

I go buy you beer

Hmmm.

Just imagine - SMH

Rip beauty, atleast this will serve as a lesson to other girls that fast money brings fast dying

What a waste. Wonder what's with beauty queens/models and drugs.RIP

Wat was she doing wit drug barons it serves her right

Orikinla: Amigos y gringos han convertido a México en una ciudad con sangre.
Han matado a la hermosa rosa de México Maria Susana Flores Gámez.

come interprete dis latin were u write,no be mexico be dis na naija

You live by the gun, you die by the gun.

Ah!! Buenos prisca la hamda vexa suexla... Hama tun la squentsi placa lum tun lad amigos.. Santa buela la hamads squenca suecto pumla.. Agenos tra a la um pioncus tumla.. Ah,la lum lum tun lum scanca...

ABEG MAKE UNA NO BLAME ME,NA WEED CAUSE AM!!!! Puskas

Orikinla: Amigos y gringos han convertido a México en una ciudad con sangre.
Han matado a la hermosa rosa de México Maria Susana Flores Gámez.

Friends and gringos have
turned Mexico into a town
with blood. They killed the
beautiful rose of Mexico
Maria Susana Flores
Gamez

Chaiiii.. See fine girl o, see as TO.TO dey waste

La puerte hibindek fou po li le tuk ishblaada pon vou mexica di beaute a kelle , lehi util unee gunno la bon bon justi . #Na everybody be mexican#

Sorry for her. RIP

_{Well, what else can I say?}

Ouch! What a wast!!!
Astala bye bye Senora Maria Flores...

alaoeri: This ain't new in mexico another corrupt country with little difference from 9ja.

I beg don't compare mexico with Nigeria. Nigeria is still far better. Mexico where human lives are cheaper than groundnuts. They will slit their throats of their enemies like chicken in broad day light. Dismember their victims like no tomorrow. If you live in Nigeria, you still have better chances of staying alive than in Mexico

The drug wars in that country are out of control.

And to this is the country that houses the world richest man >> Carlos Slim!!! O ma se O

Omo mehnnn, dis Mexico don dey turn to Afghanmexico. Almost every bless day, there must be shootin. Lyk wat other poster say, in mexico , life is as cheap as g/nut. Their ghetto na dieeeeee. Crime, sex and drugs. And dis drugs guys are f.u.c.kin rich dat is y dey cant stop despite d confrontation frm army. Bt US has hand in dis.
And who are dos blowin mexican language here, una be 9ja or mexican, make una talk true oooo

You wouldn't believe some Nigerians are dying to travel to that God forsaken country.

what you see in mexico is an acute case of love for ganja, money and women. now we have the same issues here in nigeria and very soon if care is not taken life here go cheap pass pure water.

La moupado gudbo de cera em blem

Is that not were they act don't mess with an angel. I beg make dem no kill marichuay for me becos na me go marry ham

Tekzyflex: When you prefer a gangster boyfriend than a cool headed guy.RIP madam beauty pageant.

lol

Mexico?
That lawless place is NO nation.
I had plans to go there back in 08 for new years but
the amount of kidnappings for ransom and executions of Americans
happening I was like shiiiiiet!

Mexico I no go!

RIP to the lady. I hope her family will heal from it and other young
girls will learn from her mistakes.

Death doesn't skip over beauty queens! Stick to ripping the runways, not gunplay.