Sen. Katie Britt is leading a charge against Mexican authorities after the “illicit seizure” of Vulcan Materials Company’s port facility at Punta Venado in Quintana Roo, Mexico.
Video footage shows the facility being breached and confiscated at gunpoint by Mexican military and police forces.
“This forcible seizure of private property is unlawful and unacceptable,” Britt (R-Montgomery) said. “Mexico should be more focused on going after the cartels than law-abiding businesses and hardworking people.”
The state-sanctioned takeover of the facility, owned by Birmingham-based Vulcan Materials, is shrouded in confusion. The Mexican government has been silent about last Tuesday’s pre-dawn raid.
According to a letter from Vulcan Materials CEO J. Thomas Hill, addressed to Mexican Ambassador Moctezuma, the company says it has received no legal document attempting to justify the occupation.
“CEMEX, the military, and the police forced entry into our private property. They did not possess or present at that time any court order, warrant or other official justifications for the action,” Hill said. “As of today, March 16, we have not been presented a single legal document, court order, or warrant justifying or ordering this act.”
A Mexican federal district court on March 16 ordered governmental forces to vacate the premises within 24 hours, however the property remained under military occupation as of 7:30 p.m. EST Sunday.
Britt said she won’t allow the situation to be swept under the rug.
“The ramifications of this illicit seizure extend into the United States, significantly hamstringing important American infrastructure, energy, and other construction projects that currently rely on Vulcan’s operations in Mexico for materials,” Britt said.
