Suspected fuel thieves killed a member of the Mexican navy during a confrontation as they attempted to place an illegal tap on the refined fuels pipeline between the port of Tuxpan and a major storage terminal in Azcapotzalco.
"It should be noted that the groups dedicated to fuel theft have increased the level of aggression towards our personnel, but we will not cede in the face of the threat towards society and the country's resources," said the navy, which works extensively with inland protection in Mexico.
The soldier was shot and killed during a routine patrol of the pipeline in the early hours of 4 May as part of the government's strategy to crack down on fuel theft by monitoring strategic pipelines.
A further three soldiers also suffered gunshot wounds but are in a stable condition.
The government said in January that it would deploy up to 10,000 military, navy and police personnel to permanently guard strategic fuels infrastructure, a policy that has seen fuel theft drop by 79pc to 12,000 b/d from 1 January to 31 March, according to the latest data from state-owned Pemex.
But the number of illegal pipeline taps discovered continues to increase, up by 18pc to 4,374 in the first quarter of this year compared with the year-over-year period.
The government has also stepped up revisions of retail fuel stations as part of its combat against fuel theft. The consumer protection agency, Profeco, carried out spot checks on 125 randomly selected fuel stations between 25 April and 1 May, with 50 stations temporarily shut for failing to sell full one-liter volumes, Profeco director Ricardo Sheffield said during the presidential press conference this morning.
A further retail 12 stations were fined Ps800,000 ($42,152) each for refusing to submit to the spot check.
In a national-level government analysis, Chevron-branded stations reported the highest average price for regular gasoline at Ps20.62/l ($4.11/USG), compared with Orsan at Ps19.15/l.
