Mexico’s security minister says the decapitated mayor did not ask for security Crime News
The Mexican government has released new information about the brutal killing of the mayor, Alejandro Arcos, who was found beheaded at the weekend.
The killing of Arcos came less than a week after President Claudia Sheinbaum took office, putting pressure on her administration to end cartel-related violence in the country.
On Tuesday, the Minister of Security, Omar Garcia Harfuch, told the media that Arcos, who was the leader of the opposition party, did not ask to be accompanied by security guards the day he was killed.
“The mayor was going to Petaquillas for a meeting alone,” said Garcia Harfuch, referring to the town in the coastal state of Guerrero.
“We know that he was going to a certain meeting, he was not accompanied, communication with the community was lost, and availability was lost [of his body] it was done after a few hours.”
Pressed by reporters, the minister insisted that Arcos had not spoken to the Ministry of Security or the National Guard for help, despite reports that the mayor had told local media that he wanted more protection.
Garcia Harfuch reiterated that the investigation into Arcos’ death is ongoing. “There are many details about this matter that we must monitor for investigation,” he said.
A week at the office
Arcos’ death comes less than a week after he took office on September 30 as mayor of Chilpancingo, the capital of Guerrero.
With its isolated mountains and mild Pacific climate, Guerrero has long been a center for the production of opium poppies, the main ingredient in heroin.
There are approximately 16 drug-trafficking gangs in the state, fighting to control this lucrative area.
Armed gangs openly challenged the local government, especially in 2023.
When two suspected members of the Los Ardillos gang were arrested, thousands of protesters took to the streets on behalf of the gang demanding their release.
They clashed with members of the National Guard and the police in Chilpancingo, and even used an armored vehicle to break through the gates of the state legislature. Many officials were kidnapped during the violence.
Arcos was going to meet with members of the Los Ardillos gang on Sunday, the day he died, according to Reforma, a Mexican news agency.
But pictures soon appeared on social media showing Arcos’ severed head sitting on top of what appeared to be his truck.
It was the second time in less than a week that a member of the municipal government was found dead. Just three days earlier, Francisco Tapia, another newly formed member of the city government, was shot dead.
An election marred by violence
On Tuesday, Garcia Harfuch revealed that four other mayors – from Guerrero and another state, Guanajuato – have requested protection following Arcos’ death.
Mexico has long been plagued by political violence, as religious organizations and other gangs seek to influence government affairs.
This year, the country is holding its largest election in history, with nearly 20,000 public offices up for grabs, including local, regional and state positions.
But the proceedings were marred by violence: An estimated 37 candidates were killed before voting, many of them seeking local positions. In some cases, relatives of candidates have been killed, in an attempt to intimidate.
The violence forced others to join the race. Others are assigned to members of the National Guard for protection.
After Arcos’ death, government officials expressed frustration and anger at the continued violence.
“I strongly condemn the killing of the Municipal President of Chilpancingo, Alejandro Arcos Catalán,” Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado Pineda. he wrote on social media. “His loss saddens the entire Guerrero community and fills us with anger.”
Alejandro Moreno, head of the Arcos party, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), said on Monday, “We will not allow his death to go unpunished.”
Sheinbaum’s safety strategy
As government officials grappled with Arcos’ death on Tuesday, President Sheinbaum – who was inaugurated on September 30 – outlined his proposals to strengthen security in Mexico.
A member of the left-leaning Morena Party, he ruled out a return to hardline tactics. “The war on drugs will not return,” he said, citing the controversial US-led program.
Sheinbaum spoke to his predecessor, the popular Morena leader Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, in calling for measures to address the root causes of crime, such as poverty.
He also said that his government will not use excessive force to fight crime. Mexico’s military and law enforcement have long been accused of extrajudicial killings — even colluding with corporations.
“We’re not looking at extrajudicial killings, which has happened in the past,” Sheinbaum said. “What are we going to use? Prevention, attention to causes, intelligence and [law enforcement] you were there.”
Lopez Obrador, Sheinbaum’s political adviser, has been criticized for his “hug, not bullet” approach to crime – something Sheinbaum himself has been accused of campaigning for.
