Nuevo León police chiefs arrested in sweep

The former police chiefs of Monterrey and the suburb of Guadalupe were arrested during sweeps by the Army and the Federal Investigations Agency (AFI). The authorities also carried out searches of the police headquarters of the nearby suburbs of Escobedo, Apodaca, and Juárez. The Army continues to be in charge of police functions in the suburb of García, where the police chief (a retired Army general) was assassinated at the beginning of the month. According to García’s mayor, 22 cops have been arrested, and another 20 resigned. Of the remaining 108 cops, 30-35 are still under investigation. (Reforma 11/18, 11/16)

Poll: Public supports tough anti-crime stance

A Mitofsky national telephone poll found a continued hardening of attitudes toward crime, with overwhelming support for tougher sentences and more resources for police and use of the military in fighting crime. The actions with the largest increases in support—though still at the lowest level of public acceptance—were to enable citizens to own guns to protect themselves (53%, up from 39% in February 2007) and to take justice into their own hands (45%, up from 26%). (consulta.com)

Gang violence and retribution in Nuevo León

Two days after Mauricio Fernández, the outspoken PAN mayor of the Monterrey suburb of San Pedro Garza García, implicitly took credit for the execution of a notorious kidnapper, the police chief of the neighboring town of García was ambushed and murdered along with four of his bodyguards. General (ret.) Juan Arturo Esparza García had only been on the job four days when he was gunned down while responding to a report that gunmen were approaching the mayor’s home. Over the weekend, the Nuevo León authorities arrested an alleged hitman for Los Zetas, the paramilitary wing of the Gulf Cartel, for the Esparza killing. (Universal 11/4, 11/9)

Polemic on vigilante squads escalates

Mayor Mauricio Fernández further inflamed matters when he said he would not be like other (unnamed) officials, who stood by like “stupid oxen” in the face of criminal activity. In an interview in Reforma, he called on the private sector to finance his 20-man “cleaning crews” to get rid of gang activity in San Pedro. Government Secretary Fernando Gómez Mont condemned vigilante action: “Whoever does this is harming everyone; he is a criminal, and it is not acceptable to fight crime with crime.” (Reforma 11/6, 11/7)

As mayor takes office, bodies found of gangsters who made death threats

On the day that Mauricio Fernández took office as the PAN mayor of the Monterrey suburb of San Pedro Garza García, a gangster who had threatened to kill him was found murdered in Mexico City.  In early October, the mayor-elect had said, “There are some intelligence groups that report to me directly—groups for rough work—or as I call them, a kind of cleaning crew, that will be responsible for convincing, in any way necessary, those criminal groups that there isn’t any room for them.” Fernández announced the death of ‘El Negro’ Saldaña, who was accused of running a kidnapping and extortion ring in Garza Garcia, hours before the Mexico City authorities reported finding his corpse and those of three other men, all executed. Fernández called the discovery of the bodies on the day of his inauguration a ‘coincidence.’ (Reforma 11/2, Universal 11/2)

Human rights commission accuses military of torture

The National Human Rights Commission, CNDH, issued a formal report on a military operation in Ciudad Juárez earlier this year that concluded that the confessions of eight men who were caught in a military sweep were extracted by torture, including the use of electric shocks and asphyxiation with plastic bags. In addition, the men were held incommunicado for 24 hours before being turned over to the public prosecutor. The report called on the Ministry of Defense to give psychological and medical assistance to the men, and for military justice officials to begin an investigation of members of the 76^th Infantry Battalion for probable illegal acts. (Universal 9/28)

Chávez ratified as Attorney General

By a vote of 75-27, with one abstention, the Senate ratified Arturo Chávez Chávez as Attorney General. The PAN, PRI, and PVEM voted in favor, with the PRD and PT against. PRI Senator Jesús Murillo Karam said that the PRI decided to support the nomination because the Ministry of Justice depended on the Presidency, and it was a way of keeping the President responsible for the performance of his Attorney General. In his first press conference, Chávez promised a clean up of the Ministry: “All the personnel of the PGR, starting with me, should to be subject to very rigorous examinations in order to ensure society that our responsibilities will be carried out by persons who are honest and committed to their wellbeing.” (Reforma 9/25)

U.S. unfreezes Zhenli assets

U.S. district court judge Emmet Sullivan ordered the Justice Department to release the frozen assets of Mexican businessman Zhenli Ye Gon, including US$1.7 million in cash, a Rolls Royce, a Lamborghini, and two Mercedes. The judge refused a State Department request to keep the assets frozen pending an expected request from the Mexican government to extradite Ye Gon on drug charges, noting that Mexico had had two years to present a formal request but had not done so. “You are asking me to be sensitive to the interests of a foreign government, but they have not assisted you in more than two years,” Reforma quoted the judge as telling State Department counsel Robert Stapleton. In a separate court hearing, Ye Gon’s lawyers forced a postponement in the extradition hearing scheduled for last week. (Reforma 9/17, BLT 9/16)

Wilson Center relaunches Mérida Initiative portal

The Mexico Institute of the Woodrow Wilson Center relaunched its Mérida Initiative portal as ‘a resource for researchers, journalists, policymakers, and the general public on the most significant bi-national security cooperation program ever undertaken between Mexico and the United States.’  The Mexico Insitute will partner with the Trans-Border Institute at the University of San Diego to undertake extensive and original research on key issues in the bi-national security cooperation agenda.

Chávez nomination as Attorney General under fire

The nomination of Arturo Chávez Chávez as Attorney General is facing increasing criticism. According to Reforma’s Templo Mayor, a confirmation hearing before the Senate Security Commission scheduled for Tuesday has been postponed. A majority of PRI and PAN senators are thought to oppose the nomination, and some PAN senators are also said to be unwilling to vote in favor because of the opposition of Mexican and international human rights groups. Chávez was Attorney General of Chihuahua when the case of the serial killings of women in Ciudad Juárez first came to light. (Reforma 9/14, Universal 9/14)