McALLEN (AP) - Latin Grammy winner Ramon Ayala says he only found out that his band was playing at a drug gang’s holiday party when the Mexican military raided the event.

The renowned norteno accordion player spoke publicly for the first time Tuesday since the Dec. 11 raid of a home south of Mexico City. Ayala says Los Bravos del Norte assumed the gig would be for a birthday party at a casino or event hall. When gunfire erupted, he says the band fled into a bedroom and waited for troops.

Ayala and his attorney’s office say he’s been cleared of any alleged ties to drug traffickers. But a spokeswoman for Mexico’s federal attorney general's office says the investigation continues.