John Jefferson
A memorial for slain Marine vet Nicholas Quets (GoFundMe).
Relatives of a U.S. Marine Corps veteran from Arizona who was allegedly killed by drug cartel members in Mexico earlier this month say they’ve been given the cold shoulder by the U.S. government, telling media outlets in Tucson that they’re skeptical about some of the things being reported by Mexican authorities and they want American officials to do more.
On Tuesday, a major development came down from the Sonora Attorney General’s Office in the Nicholas Quets murder case, with authorities in the northwest Mexican state announcing that they’d apprehended two suspects, killed two more and were on the hunt for another.
But according to Quets’ family, there has been no update from U.S. officials.
“I feel like my information should come from my government,” Quets’ father, Warren Douglas Quets, tells the NBC affiliate KVOA.
“That statement is not to disrespect any Mexican officials who have done what they’ve done,” Warren added, noting how he “hopes to God” the suspects being reported were actually involved in his son’s murder but that it’s hard for him to take everything at face value when the FBI is not involved.
“We trust the FBI to reach out with real information,” Quets’ brother-in-law, Phill Sweet, told the ABC affiliate KGUN on Tuesday. But that hasn’t happened yet.
Quets, 31, was driving a pickup truck from Nogales to Puerto Peñasco on Oct. 18 with some friends when he was targeted in the “direct attack” by the alleged drug cartel members. The shooting happened just before 8 p.m. near Altar, Sonora, on Federal Highway 2 — between the cities of Altar and Caborca — according to Sonora prosecutors.
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A state official with knowledge of the incident told the Arizona Daily Star that the alleged suspects had tried to stop Quets before the shooting at a road checkpoint, but he refused to pull over.
One of the alleged killers was identified Tuesday by Sonora officials as a Honduran national wanted for desertion from the country’s presidential honor guard. CBS News reported Wednesday that he was being held in custody for investigation on weapons and drug charges.
Quets’ family has told reporters that the last time they spoke to the FBI was last week, but the agency provided very few details in hopes of preserving the integrity of the case. Attempts to reach the bureau for comment by Law&Crime were unsuccessful.
Quets’ loved ones are hoping to see his alleged murderers extradited to the U.S. at some point to be brought to justice for taking the life of an American.
“I’m just so angry about this,” Warren told KGUN. “What I want for Nick is, I want his killers to be found, identified, extradited to the United States to face our penal system.”
Speaking to KVOA, Warren gave a more in-depth description of what his idea of justice would look like.
“What does justice for Nick look like? At the tactical level, it’s bringing the people back that did this,” he said. “At the operational level, it’s to dismantle those cartels. I know people out there think that’s naive or that it’s too big, it’s not.”
Last week, the Quets killing was spotlighted in a speech by Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Tempe, with him bringing up members of the Marine vet’s family onto the stage with him to be cheered by the crowd.
“Just days ago, a young Marine Corps veteran named Nicholas Quets from right here in Arizona was driving through Mexico for a beach weekend … when he was viciously gunned down on the highway and murdered by members of a Mexican cartel,” Trump said, per the Star. “And it was brutal. For no reason whatsoever.”
Quets’ loved ones have told media outlets that they don’t want to politicize his death, but they have struggled to find support from either side of the aisle.
“I am not here to promote a party,” Warren told KGUN. “I’m an apolitical person who’s always put my heart, mind, body and physical soul on the line for the United States government.”
However, Sweet pointed out, “It’s been 10 days since the murder of Nicholas Quets and we have yet to hear from either of our U.S. senators, the governor, or the current administration. Outside of Congressman [Juan] Ciscomani’s office and personally speaking with Sen. [JD] Vance, we have heard from zero elected officials.”
Quets’ family shared details about his life and murder in a GoFundMe post, with the money from the fundraiser slated to go to the “expenses of bringing Nicholas home to Tucson,” funeral and service expenses, and the establishment of the “Nicholas Douglas Quets Memorial Scholarship” for local students.
“We are devastated by the tragic and untimely loss of U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Nicholas Douglas Quets, a beloved son, brother, and friend, who was senselessly murdered on October 18, 2024, while traveling through Sonora, Mexico by a cartel,” the family says. “Nicholas, a Tucson native, was on a trip with friends when his life was cut short in a violent and unprovoked attack along Federal Highway 2. His death is the latest tragedy in a growing pattern of violent incidents along the U.S./Mexico border.”
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