As previously reported by REVOLT, on Friday (March 3), a group of four Americans traveled from South Carolina to Matamoros, Mexico so that one could undergo a tummy tuck procedure. Moments after crossing the border near Brownsville, Texas, they were ambushed and kidnapped by armed members of the Gulf Cartel.

Shaeed Woodard and Zindell Brown were killed during the kidnapping. Eric James Williams was shot in the leg, and Latavia “Tay” Washington McGee, who the young men traveled for, was left physically unharmed. Yesterday (March 7), authorities found the Americans in a wooden shack in Ejido Tecolote, a rural area just outside the Mexican city. Photos that surfaced online showed the distraught state of the survivors.

Today (March 8), the New York Post published an article in which one of Williams’ family members described the horrific ordeal. Although Williams’ mother declined to speak with the outlet, his cousin, Jerry Wallace, offered some insight after speaking with the survivor. “He’s talking strong and everything. He [is] doing better than what he was,” Wallace shared. “He’s just upset about his friend getting killed right in front of him — which anybody else would be with the stuff he went through,” the older cousin continued. Wallace noted that it was Williams’ first time traveling outside the United States, but he joined McGee because “he’s a tight friend. If you’re a friend, he’s a friend.”

Wallace added, “We didn’t find out… until Sunday that he was even in [Mexico].” He revealed that Williams’ wife was also out of the loop when it came to his whereabouts. Brown’s sister previously shared that her slain sibling expressed hesitancy about the trip. “Zindell kept saying, ‘We shouldn’t go down,’” the grieving family member said. The area is under a “Level 4: Do Not Travel” advisory for United States citizens. Yesterday, 24-year-old José Guadalupe N. was arrested in connection to the kidnapping. He reportedly stood guard at the shack where the group was tortured.