Gunmen posing as police officers entered the Amadeus strip club in Juarez, Chihuahua state and methodically executed six people in the early morning hours of Nov. 4, including U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. David Booher Montanez. STRATFOR sources reported that members of the Vicente Carrillo Fuentes (VCF) organization's enforcement arm, known as La Linea, followed a group of individuals into the club.

The gunmen ordered everyone to lie down on ground, and then methodically executed the initial targets who reportedly worked for Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman Loera's Sinaloa cartel enforcement arm, called Nueva Gente. The gunmen proceeded to execute others who were armed in the club, which included Booher Montanez and other members of his group.

While on the surface, it appears that Booher Montanez was in the wrong place at the wrong time, a deeper look reveals that he was already under investigation by the Air Force for allegedly using illegal documents to confirm his U.S. citizenship before entering the U.S. Air Force, as well as having suspected criminal ties in Mexico.

Additionally, Booher Montanez defied set Air Force orders when he traveled to Juarez; there are standing orders that forbid any U.S. military personnel from traveling to Mexico without prior approval, which Booher Montanez did not receive.

Staff Sgt. Booher Montanez's death must be put into the context of an ongoing trend; criminal organizations have begun recruiting current and former military members to supplement their operations. Street gangs in the United States have long been sending their members to join the U.S. armed forces to receive tactical training that then can be used for gang operations and training fellow gang members.

There have also been an increasing number of reports that cartels are making a concerted effort to recruit former U.S. military personnel (especially those who have seen combat in Iraq and Afghanistan) to carry out targeted assassinations and escort shipments of drugs.

While there are many questions that remain unanswered about Booher Montanez's killing and his activities in Juarez, an ongoing investigation into his true citizenship and ties to Mexico indicate that he was not merely a victim of circumstance.