Mexico’s National Electoral Institute (INE) denounced the kidnapping of one of their staff in the border city of Matamoros which occurred earlier this month. However, relatives revealed to Breitbart Texas that officials have done little to get him back.
The kidnapping took place on February 2, when 40-year-old Jesus Ivan Romero Velazquez was driving to hold a training event in the city of Matamoros. Romero was a supervisor with the INE and tasked with training volunteers to work polling locations.
According to a statement from INE, Romero Velazquez was driving to the Trevino Zapata neighborhood when gunmen in two SUVs cut him off and dragged him out of his vehicle. At the time of the kidnapping, the victim was reportedly wearing an INE uniform vest.
Breitbart Texas spoke with relatives of Romero Velazquez, who revealed that the INE has not contacted them nor have they filed any complaints. Relatives claim they were the ones who filed a formal complaint with the Tamaulipas Attorney General’s Office to issue a missing person’s notice.
The kidnapping comes at a time when Tamaulipas officials are downplaying a rise in crime in Matamoros and beyond. Spokesmen from the Tamaulipas government have not responded to calls from Breitbart Texas.
Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to Mexico City and the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. The writers would face certain death at the hands of the various cartels that operate in those areas including the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas if a pseudonym were not used. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and their original Spanish. This article was written by “Francisco Morales”, “C.P., Mireles” and “E.F. Robles” from Jalisco.
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