Mexican police arrested in surprise attack

The arrested officers were transferred to Mexico City

Up to 120 Mexican police officers have been arrested in the northern city of Tijuana on suspicion of corruption.

Officials said the suspects had been tricked into attending what they thought was a performance review at the state police academy.

But instead, as soon as they were inside, soldiers and federal police stormed the building, arresting the officers and confiscating their weapons.

The suspects were later flown to Mexico City for questioning about suspected links to the drugs trade.

Surprise attack

"We have just been informed that agents from the attorney general's office and the army carried out a surprise operation in which members of different police forces were detained," said Eugenio Elorduy, Governor of Baja California state.

His office said as many as 120 police officers had been detained, while the federal government's news agency put the figure nearer to 200.

Notorious gang leader Benjamin Arellano Felix was recently arrested

A federal government source said the suspects mostly belonged to local police forces in Tijuana, Ensenada and Mexicali.

Among those detained was Tijuana police chief Carlos Otal.

The mass arrest was one of President Vincente Fox's largest corruption crackdowns and may be linked to the recent dismantling of the powerful Tijuana drugs cartel.

Tijuana, just across the US border from San Diego, was seen for many years as a safe haven for the Arellano Felix family drug cartel, Mexico's most notorious trafficking gang.

But the cartel has suffered heavy blows in recent weeks with police first killing gang leader Ramon Arellano Felix and then capturing his brother, Benjamin.

Ramon Arellano Felix, who allegedly had dozens of his rivals killed and tortured, was on the FBI's list of 10 most wanted criminals.