140 prisoners escape near US border of Mexico

MORE than 140 inmates escaped via the entrance of a prison near the US border on Friday in the biggest Mexican jailbreak since the government began its war on drugs four years ago.

Hours later, suspected hitmen blew up a car outside a police station near the business hub of Monterrey.

In a brazen move underscoring Mexico's weak prison system, inmates slowly filed out of the main entrance of the jail in Nuevo Laredo early on Friday.

Later on Friday, in the small town of Zuazua, on the northern outskirts of Monterrey, an SUV exploded, injuring two people.