It’s no secret that many cities in Mexico are being overrun by drug cartels as they seek to control individual communities. In order to do that, they must eliminate political threats, which is why more and more Mexican political figures are being kidnapped or killed. The latest tragedy is that of the newly elected Mayor Gisela Mota. She had just been sworn in for her term on Friday along with the new year and has been described as “a strong and brave woman who on taking office as mayor, declared that her fight against crime would be frontal and direct.” This statement from her peers at the Democratic Revolution Party makes it even more unfortunate that her vision was not able to be fulfilled.
El Universal is reporting that on Saturday morning around 7:30, the first female mayor of the city was attacked at her home by four gunmen who entered her home, beat her and then shot her in the head. Her death was confirmed later at 7:50. The suspects tried to flee in a van, but police pursued them and exchanged fire, ultimately killing two of them while the other two were taken into custody. Mota was killed in Temixco, located about 60 miles south of Mexico City. The city has a population of about 100,000 making it the 4th largest city in the state of Morelos and also one of the most violent.
Morelos Governor Ramirez tweeted that there “would be no impunity” in her killing and promised that state officials would not back down from what he calls a “challenge from criminals.” The state of Morelos has been suffering from organized crime, extortion and kidnappings for years. What’s more, they are neighbors to cartel-plagues Guerrero states. In order to protect Americans, the US Department of State has issued a travel warning for those venturing to Morelos:
“Exercise caution in the state of Morelos due to the unpredictable nature of organized crime violence. You should also defer non-essential travel on any roads between Huitzilac in the northwest corner of the state and Santa Marta in the state of Mexico, including the Lagunas de Zempoala National Park and surrounding areas. Numerous incidents of organized crime-related violence have also occurred in the city of Cuernavaca.”
Please keep the family of Mayor Mota in your prayers!
TSR Intern: Talia O. @theclosetratchet on Instagram & @tallyohhh on Twitter!
Source Cited: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/mayor-mexico-city-murdered-day-office-article-1.2483409, http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/alertswarnings/mexico-travel-warning.html,
