Published 14:07 IST, September 10th 2020
Mexico: Journalist found beheaded near railroads, minister condemns 'cowardly murder'
A newspaper in Mexico reported on September 9 that one of his reporters, Julio Valdivia has been murdered and beheaded. Body found on railroads near his bike.
A Mexican newspaper reported on September 9 that one of his reporters has been murdered and beheaded. As per media watchdog Reporters Without Borders, with the death of Julio Valdivia in Mexico, five journalists in the nation have been killed in 2020. The body of the 41-year-old was found near his motorcycle on railroads tracks in the town of Motzorongo.
The security minister and head of police in Veracruz state Hugo Gutierrez reportedly condemned the “cowardly murder” and has taken a pledge to “exhaust all resources” in the hunt of those responsible for the killing of the journalist. Julio Valdivia used to report for the newspaper, El Mundo de Veracruz and worked primarily in a rural zone near Oaxaca state that according to reports, has been stricken by gang violence for a long time.
As per the report by his newspaper, Valdivia had covered an encounter between the law enforcement officers and the suspected criminals just a day before his body was found on the rail tracks. Ana Laura Perez of the State Commission for the Attention and Protection of Journalists, a government body has reportedly noted that the 41-year-old used to work in ‘complicated area’ with criminal groups. She has urged further investigation into the matter for officials to gather information on the reports of the journalist that bothered the gangs.
Over 140 journalists killed in 20 years
According to reports, in the last two decades, over 140 journalists have been murdered in Mexico and a comparatively smaller fraction of such murders led to a conviction. Just in March, journalist Maria Elena Ferral was shot dead by two assailants on motorbikes while getting in her car in Veracruz. In August, another independent journalist, Juan Nelcio Espinoza had died in police custody after being arrested on covering a confrontation in the city of Piedras Negras.
Image: representative/ Unsplash
Updated 14:06 IST, September 10th 2020