Mexico’s attorney general cites violations in investigations into suspected cartel killing sites
Mexico City (AP) – The Mexican Attorney General reported Wednesday that hundreds of articles and other personal effects were found on a ranch in the western Jalisco state during a state government investigation into suspected cartel killing sites and training camps.
Authorities found a ranch in the town of Teuchitlan outside Guadalajara in September 2024. Six months later, a so-called search collectively found burnt bone fragments and personal items, raising questions about the original investigation by the Jalisco State Attorney’s Office.
Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero, who took over the investigation last week, said investigators in Jalisco failed to register evidence, fingerprints and process vehicles found on the ranch, three of whom were later stolen.
He said local authorities did not investigate ownership of the ranch and failed to scientifically analyze the location of the ranch to see if they were used as crematoriums. He said investigators did not arrest local officials related to ranch activities.
Gertz Manero said that despite an action at the site last year, federal prosecutors did not alert the site like standard procedures and blamed the state attorney’s office. He added that there is still not enough information to confirm whether the ranch was used to cremate the bodies or train cartel members.
Last week, the Jalisco State Search Warriors shared images that shocked a lot of news that had long been accustomed to the cartel war, forced disappearances and government corruption. These images and videos show dozens of shoes, a bunch of clothes and what appears to be fragments of human bones.
These collectives have long risked their lives to seek answers about what happened to Mexico’s 120,000 missing people under rampant impunity.
The vigil was held on weekends for alleged victims of the location.
On Monday, a video was circulated showing masked and armed men who read a statement identifying themselves as Jalisco’s new generation cartel and questioning the searcher’s motivations.
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