UK ambassador to Mexico removed after pointing gun at staff
- A video circulated on social media showed Jon Benjamin jokingly pointing an assault rifle at a local embassy employee inside a vehicle
- He was on a work trip to a northwestern region plagued by drug cartel violence when the incident happened
Britain’s ambassador to Mexico was removed from his post after allegedly pointing an assault rifle inside a vehicle carrying embassy staff, reports said on Friday.
The UK government said it had taken “appropriate action” after the incident, without confirming that Jon Benjamin had been sacked.
Benjamin was on a work trip to a northwestern region plagued by drug cartel violence when the incident happened, the Financial Times reported.
“Benjamin, a career diplomat, was sacked as ambassador soon after the episode in April,” the newspaper said, quoting unnamed people familiar with the matter.
Foreign officials often travel with bodyguards when visiting danger zones in Mexico, it noted.
A video posted by an anonymous account on the social media platform X this week appeared to show the moment when Benjamin jokingly pointed the weapon towards the rear of the vehicle.
The face of a passenger – described by the FT as a local embassy employee – sitting in the back seat was blurred out.
