Gunmen seized a Holiday Inn in Monteray Mexico, just south of the border.

New, 12:20 pm: Read the full statement from InterContinental Hotels Group, which owns the Holiday Inn brand.


Original post: About three dozen gunmen stormed into a 17-story Holiday Inn and another hotel in the middle of Wednesday night in the industrial city of Monterrey, Mexico, and dragged off six people including three businessmen from Mexico City, according to reports from outlets including the Christian Science Monitor and the Associated Press.


Among the people abducted: three men who registered at the Holiday Inn as businessmen from Mexico City, and a woman registered from McAllen, Texas, across the border, according to the AP's story. It's presumed to be the latest sign of drug-related violence in Mexico, the reports say.
The gunmen appeared to be searching for specific people, the AP story says.


The gunmen had with them a handcuffed man who led them to the 5th floor, the AP story says. The gunmen then room 517, where an Asian guest was staying; he wasn't who they were looking for so they left, the story says. The group then searched at least seven more rooms on the 5th floor before leaving the hotel and going into the Hotel Mision across the street where they abducted a receptionist, the AP story says.


Readers: InterContinental Hotels Group is sending me a statement now. I'll add it in a few minutes.