Third assassination of mayor in Mexico in two weeks
Source: Deutsche Welle
Third assassination of mayor in Mexico in two weeks
With yet another mayor shot dead in Mexico within two weeks calls for better security for municipal officials have been quickly amassing. The country's war on drugs is fast approaching crisis point.
03.08.2016
Jose Santa Maria Zavala, the mayor of the town of Huehuetlan El Grande in Puebla State, was found dead last night next to his bullet-riddled car. Local residents found his body and alerted authorities. He was the third mayor to be killed in Mexico in two weeks.
The motive for the slaying was unclear; however, initial investigation findings stated that 44-year-old Zavala had been the victim of a robbery attempt. Authorities added they were not ruling out other motives, stressing there were no known threats against him.
The police report specified that the mayor's secretary had been traveling with him but was not there when authorities arrived. It was not clear if the secretary was among witnesses who were being interviewed by police.
A crisis about to escalate
The National Association of Mayors of Mexico said that at least 41 mayors had been murdered since 2006 when the country's war on narcotics began to escalate. Two other mayors were killed just last month.
Read more: http://www.dw.com/en/third-assassination-of-mayor-in-mexico-in-two-weeks/a-19445154
