Villagers in the Mexican coastal state of Guerrero are denouncing the mass kidnapping, torture, and likely execution of approximately 50 men at the hands of the Familia Michoacana Cartel. Videos and photographs appear to detail the horrors inflicted on the villagers. Officials claim there were no formal complaints or evidence of wrongdoing, however.
The mass kidnapping allegedly took place over the weekend in the Tierra Caliente region of Guerrero. In a leaked video, a group of cartel gunmen allegedly with La Familia Michoacana can be seen beating and torturing villagers as they laugh and celebrate.
La Familia Michoacana levanta 53 personas en 14 comunidades del Estado de Guerrero y los asesina en 48 horas, las víctimas son originarios del Municipio de Coyuca de Catalan @IldefonsoOrtiz pic.twitter.com/REVwGrhvRY
A series of leaked photographs show various men who were brutalized by cartel gunmen.
Other photographs depict dead men in the bed of a pickup showing visible signs of torture. Villagers accuse local police of working with cartels to allow the criminal organization to operate with impunity.
Days after the mass kidnapping, Roberto Alvarez Heredia, a spokesman for the State of Guerrero, told Mexico’s Televisa that the accusations were not true. Officials claimed there was no evidence to support the allegations. The comments were soon followed by a series of public statements by Guerrero Governor Hector Astudillo Flores, who claimed the events depicted in the videos cannot be confirmed.
Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to the Mexican States of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and other areas to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and in their original Spanish. This article was written by Jose Luis Lara, a former leading member who helped start the Self-Defense Movement in Michoacán.
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