The Secretary of National Defense (Sedena) reported the sending of more than a thousand elements of the Army to the Tarahumara town of Cerocahuiin the municipality of Urique, Chihuahua, after the murder of the Jesuit priests Javier Campos and Joaquín Mora, as well as the tourist guide Pedro Palma, last Monday, June 13.
In a statement, Sedena assured that the sending of soldiers to the area, located in the Sierra Tarahumara, is in accordance with the National Strategy for Public Security and the policy of zero impunity.
The elements, belonging to the Army and Air Force Special Forces Units, will carry out tasks to “inhibit the activities of organized crime and address the security problem in that municipality.”
“The main mission of these units is to join the Regional Task Force to carry out planning and intelligence work that strengthens the rule of law in the entity and carry out land and dissuasive surveys in the vicinity of Cerocahui, Bahuichivo, Mesa de Arturo, Ciénega de los Trejos and Piedras Verdes, as well as in the mountainous area of the state of Chihuahua,” the agency assured.
In addition, they will collaborate with the authorities in the “arrest of members of organized crime, acting at all times with full respect for human rights,” he emphasized.
Sedena highlighted that among the characteristics of the units sent are their “great mobility and deployment capacity, the weapons, materiel, equipment and specialized training with which they count for different types of activities”.
The military will act in a coordinated manner with the Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection, the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic, as well as with state and municipal authorities.
“With these actions, the Mexican Army and Air Force reaffirm the indeclinable decision of the federal government to continue acting against organized crime, attending to the needs that the Chihuahuan society demands; Likewise, it endorses its commitment to watch over and safeguard the well-being of citizens, guaranteeing the peace and security of Mexicans in the country”, he concluded.
This Saturday in the parish of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Chihuahua a mass was held to bid farewell to the Jesuit priests Javier Campos Morales and Joaquín César Mora Salazar.
“The hugs are no longer enough to cover the bullets (…) our tone is peaceful but loud and clear”, said Jesuit priest Javier Ávila, leader of the community in Cerocahui, Chihuahua. The priest invited government actions to end the prevailing impunity in society. “There are thousands of voiceless mourners crying out for justice to our nation.”
On June 23, the Mexican Episcopate Conference (CEM) called on the federal government and the different levels of authorities to review security strategies that “are failing”.
Through a statement, the catholic church spoke out for listening to the citizenry, to the relatives of victims, as well as to the police forces mistreated by the crime.
“Given the seriousness of the facts, We call on the Federal Government and the different levels of authorities: it is time to review the security strategies that are failing. It is time to listen to the relatives of the victims, of the murdered and disappeared, to the police forces mistreated by the crime”, he said.
Last Friday, at the morning press conference at the National Palace, the Undersecretary for Security, Ricardo Mejía Berdeja, assured that the Army will continue with the search for José Noriel Portillo “El Chueco”, to whom the three murders are attributed.
On Thursday, June 22, the Chihuahua authorities reported the arrest of two men in Urique, Chihuahua, in possession in possession of two long weapons, a handgun and drugs.
The subjects were identified as Cesar Ivan PP and Humberto BC, and his detention was carried out in a dirt gap in the Cuiteco sectional, in the municipality of Urique. The operation was attended by elements of the SSPE, in coordination with the Secretary of National Defense (Sedena) and the National Guard. According to local media, César Iván is a cousin of “El Chueco”.
Reference-aristeguinoticias.com
