Public Security News from Mexico
07/01/11
Latin America and the Caribbean
Distrito Federal
- Journalist and women's rights activist Lydia Cacho has reported receiving death threats for her work in exposing sex trafficking, child pornography and prostitution. Cacho has previously been the victim of torture and police abuse for revealing the names of public officials and well-known businessmen involved in illicit activities.
Nuevo Leon
- The police chief of Santa Catarina was murdered inside his office by armed men wearing police-style badges. Authorities are currently investigating 7 police officers, including the chief's bodyguards, for allegedly doing nothing to stop the attack.
- 11 people were killed over the weekend in Ciudad Juárez. The victims include two transit police officers, who were shot while issuing a traffic citation.
Oaxaca
- Alejandro Solalinde, a priest who aids migrants passing through Oaxaca, reported that anywhere from 60 to 80 migrants, including women and children, were kidnapped while aboard a train bound for the U.S. border. According to Solalinde, armed men stopped the train and forced the migrants into trucks. Authorities have attributed the kidnappings to the killed. Last month President Calderon introduced a new law to protect Central American migrants coming to or passing through Mexico, but undocumented migrants remain vulnerable to abuse by organized crime. On Thursday, June 30, an official reported that the government has been unable to find evidence to confirm Solalinde's testimony.
Sinaloa
- A confrontation between the Army and several armed men left one gunman dead and two soldiers wounded.
Veracruz
- Federal Police captured Albert González Peña in Veracruz on Monday, June 27. Peña, known as "The Tiger," was the Zetas' plaza boss for the state of Veracruz. He is known for selecting his own friends and acquaintances as kidnapping victims to make collecting ransom easier.
Tamaulipas
- A captured Zeta member has revealed why the Zetas pulled dozens of men off of buses in Tamaulipas before killing them and leaving their bodies in mass graves. The Zetas reportedly stopped the men because they suspected them of working for the rival Gulf Cartel.
This blog was written by CIP Intern Claire O'Neill McCleskey