I know this event has already been covered but I wanted to add more information that has since come out and also share some observations.
Well as was already reported on Borderland Beat the body of the woman found last Thursday morning in a field in the town of Cuitzeo was identified as the former Mayor of Tiquicheo María Santos Gorrostieta Salazar. She had already survived two previous attacks from heavily armed sicarios. One occurred in October 2009 where her husband lost her life and the other occurred in January 2010 where she was gravely injured by gunfire.
It was reported that last Monday at around 0830 AM Gorrostieta Salazar left her home to take her daughter to school. While on her way, on the north part of the city of Morelia, Michoacan another vehicle blocked her path. Two men forced her in a black car with tinted window while pushing and kicking her. This happened in the middle of the street in plain view of many motorists that just watched the event unfold. As they were trying to get her in the car, she begged them not to take her daughter and told them she would get in if they left her daughter alone. They left with Gorrostieta Salazar leaving her daughter crying alone in the car. No one dared intervene to help her.
The family waited for the abductors to call, thinking they would want a ransom or something. When the hours turned into days with no calls, the family asked the police for help locating her. Gorrostieta Salazar was abducted Monday November 12, 2012 and was not offically reported missing by the family until Wednesday November 14, 2012.
At around 0800 this last Thursday field workers from the community of San Juan Tararameo, in the municipality of Cuitzeo discovered the body of a woman facing up wearing a red dress. The woman showed signed of being tied up and had at least two blows to the head from blunt instrument that caused her death. In fact according to the preliminary report of the PGJE it was reported that the cause of death was by "severe head trauma", and her body showed multiple abrasions and contusions that is consistent with signs of being tortured.
An investigation to the murder is alleged to be underway and it is not known who might have been responsible for her death. Hopefully the Mexican authorities can find the people responsible. One has to wonder why with a history of at least two attempts on her life she was not better protected.
The state government of Michoacan gave a formal statement that she did not have any dignitary protection because she had not officially requested it nor was there any report of threats on her life.
Gorrostieta Salazar was Mayor of Tiquicheo from 2008 to 2011 and during her tenure she was routinely threatened by criminal groups.
It just doesn't make sense. Not many things make sense in Mexico now a days, and she just becomes another casualty in what is so wrong in Mexico today.
The political party PAN in Michoacan condemned the murder and demanded justice for the former mayor. Enrique Peña Nieto, PRI President-elect, gets sworn in the end of December, see how that goes.
The political party PAN in Michoacan condemned the murder and demanded justice for the former mayor. Enrique Peña Nieto, PRI President-elect, gets sworn in the end of December, see how that goes.
