UK sacks its ambassador to Mexico after he was caught ‘pointing a gun at his staff’

The UK’s ambassador to Mexico was sacked earlier this year after he was filmed pointing an assault rifle at a local embassy worker, it has been reported.

According to the Financial Times, Jon Benjamin was on an official trip to two Mexican states with a strong drug cartel presence when he picked up a gun from the vehicle he was traveling in and pointed it at an employee.

A video purporting to show the incident was posted to X by an anonymous user, who wrote alongside the video: “In a context of daily murders in Mexico by drug traffickers, he dares to joke. »

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The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has not officially announced Mr Benjamin’s position. However, the government’s official website states that he “served as Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Mexico between 2021 and 2024.”

According to the website, Mr Benjamin “joined the diplomatic service in 1986 and previously represented the British government in Chile, Ghana, Turkey, Indonesia and the United States, during his 35-year career.”

The FCDO said in a statement: “We are aware of this incident and have taken appropriate action.

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“When internal issues arise, the FCDO has robust HR processes in place to resolve them.”

Since mid-April, Rachel Brazier has been charge d’affaires at the British embassy in Mexico, a position where a diplomat acts as head of mission of an embassy in the absence of the ambassador.