Latest news with #JaliscoSearchWarriors
Epoch Times
06-05-2025
- Epoch Times
Mexican Mayor Arrested in Connection With Cartel Training Camp Where Human Remains Found
A mayor in western Mexico has been arrested in connection with a stalled probe into a suspected drug cartel training camp, where human remains and clothing were found last September. During a May 5 presentation, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum The Jalisco New Generation Cartel, a violent drug trafficking group, has been accused by Mexican authorities of operating the Rancho Izaguirre in Jalisco state to train newly recruited gunmen. Santiago was arrested on May 3 as part of an investigation by government prosecutors into probable omissions or complicity of local authorities with the Jalisco New Generation cartel, a federal source told the AFP wire service on May 3. Relatives searching for missing family members were tipped off by an anonymous source about the site in March, and went to the ranch, where they reported finding bone fragments and hundreds of pieces of clothing. Many said the ranch could have been a mass killing site . However, Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero told the media last month he could not confirm there were human remains at the site besides the initial body found there by National Guard troops last September. Related Stories 5/3/2025 3/22/2025 He also said that the state Human Rights Commission had formally informed local authorities of the ranch in 2021, but no action was taken. According to the Jalisco state prosecutor's office at the time, authorities arrested 10 people, freed two hostages, and discovered one body, describing the ranch as a cartel training site. Investigators, armed with a backhoe, dogs, and devices to search the grounds, had attended the ranch to investigate, but the operation stalled without explanation. After receiving the anonymous tip, t he Jalisco Search Warriors group visited the Teuchitlán ranch in March, which sits about 37 miles from Guadalajara, to search for missing members of the community, according to news reports. Abductions remain a problem in Mexico due to cartel violence and crime, with many people disappearing or found dead. The group said they found backpacks, dozens of shoes, piles of clothing, and what appeared to be human bone fragments. The disturbing findings sparked outrage within Mexico, prompting Mexico's federal government to get involved in the investigation. Following public pressure, the Jalisco state prosecutor's office agreed to publish online photos of the shoes and other clothing items found at the ranch so that families searching for relatives can see them. Manero said that the pieces of evidence will also be made available to relatives. However, members of the Jalisco Search Warriors have expressed disappointment at Manero's public statements and response, saying they had sufficient evidence that bodies were burned at the site. A group member, Raúl Servín, also said late April that a compatriot in the group, María del Carmen Morales, had been killed following their discovery in March. The discovery came as President Donald Trump intensified pressure on Mexico through designating several Mexican criminal organizations as terrorist groups, while imposing tariffs in an effort to secure the U.S. southern border and counter fentanyl trafficking. In February, the U.S. State Department designated the Jalisco New Generation, Sinaloa, Gulf, United, and Northeast cartels and La Nueva Familia Michoacana as foreign terrorist organizations and specially designated global terrorists. Policy analysts in the United States have said that the cartels operate as a shadow government within Mexico, making them difficult to dismantle. Trump recently offered to send U.S. troops into Mexico to help combat the drug cartels—an offer that Sheinbaum The Mexican president said she was willing to work with Trump to counter the cartels but drew the line at allowing U.S. troops on Mexican soil. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Euronews
06-05-2025
- Euronews
Mexican mayor arrested as part of cartel training site probe
ADVERTISEMENT The mayor of a town in the west Mexican state of Jalisco has been arrested over his alleged links to a notorious cartel training site. José Murguía Santiago, was detained on Saturday as part of a federal investigation into the Izaguirre Ranch, where human bones and clothing were found earlier this year. Located outside Teuchitlán, the town where he is the mayor, the site is thought to have been used by the infamous Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). Speaking to the local media, the mayor denied any connection with the ranch. However, prosecutors claim he knew of its existence and failed to act. The site, which has been dubbed Mexico's "ranch of horror," made headlines in March when people searching for their relatives announced that they had discovered shoes, clothes and charred bones there, following a tip-off. The Jalisco Search Warriors, the group that found the items on the ranch, called it an "extermination camp." Related Search group in Mexico discovers possible cartel mass killing site At the time, they blamed the authorities for failing to properly investigate the property, which was first uncovered by federal soldiers in September. After the news about the ranch caused uproar across Mexico, the government said it would lead the investigation into what happened there. Speaking last week, Attorney-General Alejandro Gertz suggested that the facility had not been used as an extermination or cremation site. His response met with frustration from the Jalisco Search Warriors, who claimed Gertz was mistaken and that the property was more than just a cartel recruitment and training centre. Last month, two members of the collective, Carmen Morales and her son Jaime Ramirez, were shot dead, the Jalisco state prosecutor's office said. In the past few decades, more than 120,000 people have disappeared in Mexico. The federal authorities are not doing enough to investigate these human rights abuses and to end the impunity surrounding them, campaigners say.
Hamilton Spectator
29-04-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
Mexico's attorney general says ranch was used for cartel training, but no mass graves found
MEXICO CITY (AP) — A ranch in the western Mexican state of Jalisco was used for cartel recruitment and training, but federal investigators found no evidence of bodies being burned there, Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero said Tuesday. Gertz Manero said it was 'absolutely proven' that the ranch had been used by the Jalisco New Generation Cartel for recruitment and training since 2021. In March, relatives searching for missing family members inspected the ranch and reported finding hundreds of pieces of clothing and numerous bone fragments. They alerted that it could have been a mass killing site . Gertz Manero said Tuesday that besides the initial body found by authorities last September, he could not confirm that there were others. The Jalisco Search Warriors group visited the ranch in Teuchitlan, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) from Guadalajara that was originally found by National Guard troops last September. At that time, authorities said 10 people were arrested, two hostages were freed and a body was found. They described it as a cartel training site. The state prosecutor's office went in with a backhoe, dogs and devices to find inconsistencies in the ground, but then the investigation inexplicably stalled. The search group had gone to the Izaguirre ranch in March after receiving an anonymous call. Inside they went to work with simple tools — picks, shovels and metal bars — doing the work that state investigators supposedly had done six months earlier. What they found embarrassed state authorities and shook Mexico: dozens of shoes, heaps of clothing and what appeared to be human bone fragments. Eventually, the Jalisco state prosecutor's office published photos of the shoes and other clothing items found at the site on a web page where families searching for relatives could see them. Following the uproar, the federal government took over the case. Gertz Manero said his office would make those pieces of evidence available to those looking for missing relatives. He said the state Human Rights Commission had formally told local authorities about the ranch in 2021, but nothing was apparently done. Some 15 people have been arrested, including three local police from the neighboring town of Tala and a member of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel who worked as a recruiter. Mexico has struggled with a plague of disappearances for decades and the official count now exceeds 127,000. ____ Follow AP's coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Yahoo
Mexico's attorney general says ranch was used for cartel training, but no mass graves found
MEXICO CITY (AP) — A ranch in the western Mexican state of Jalisco was used for cartel recruitment and training, but federal investigators found no evidence of bodies being burned there, Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero said Tuesday. Gertz Manero said it was 'absolutely proven' that the ranch had been used by the Jalisco New Generation Cartel for recruitment and training since 2021. In March, relatives searching for missing family members inspected the ranch and reported finding hundreds of pieces of clothing and numerous bone fragments. They alerted that it could have been a mass killing site. Gertz Manero said Tuesday that besides the initial body found by authorities last September, he could not confirm that there were others. The Jalisco Search Warriors group visited the ranch in Teuchitlan, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) from Guadalajara that was originally found by National Guard troops last September. At that time, authorities said 10 people were arrested, two hostages were freed and a body was found. They described it as a cartel training site. The state prosecutor's office went in with a backhoe, dogs and devices to find inconsistencies in the ground, but then the investigation inexplicably stalled. The search group had gone to the Izaguirre ranch in March after receiving an anonymous call. Inside they went to work with simple tools — picks, shovels and metal bars — doing the work that state investigators supposedly had done six months earlier. What they found embarrassed state authorities and shook Mexico: dozens of shoes, heaps of clothing and what appeared to be human bone fragments. Eventually, the Jalisco state prosecutor's office published photos of the shoes and other clothing items found at the site on a web page where families searching for relatives could see them. Following the uproar, the federal government took over the case. Gertz Manero said his office would make those pieces of evidence available to those looking for missing relatives. He said the state Human Rights Commission had formally told local authorities about the ranch in 2021, but nothing was apparently done. Some 15 people have been arrested, including three local police from the neighboring town of Tala and a member of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel who worked as a recruiter. Mexico has struggled with a plague of disappearances for decades and the official count now exceeds 127,000. ____ Follow AP's coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
Winnipeg Free Press
29-04-2025
- Winnipeg Free Press
Mexico's attorney general says ranch was used for cartel training, but no mass graves found
MEXICO CITY (AP) — A ranch in the western Mexican state of Jalisco was used for cartel recruitment and training, but federal investigators found no evidence of bodies being burned there, Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero said Tuesday. Gertz Manero said it was 'absolutely proven' that the ranch had been used by the Jalisco New Generation Cartel for recruitment and training since 2021. In March, relatives searching for missing family members inspected the ranch and reported finding hundreds of pieces of clothing and numerous bone fragments. They alerted that it could have been a mass killing site. Gertz Manero said Tuesday that besides the initial body found by authorities last September, he could not confirm that there were others. The Jalisco Search Warriors group visited the ranch in Teuchitlan, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) from Guadalajara that was originally found by National Guard troops last September. At that time, authorities said 10 people were arrested, two hostages were freed and a body was found. They described it as a cartel training site. The state prosecutor's office went in with a backhoe, dogs and devices to find inconsistencies in the ground, but then the investigation inexplicably stalled. The search group had gone to the Izaguirre ranch in March after receiving an anonymous call. Inside they went to work with simple tools — picks, shovels and metal bars — doing the work that state investigators supposedly had done six months earlier. What they found embarrassed state authorities and shook Mexico: dozens of shoes, heaps of clothing and what appeared to be human bone fragments. Eventually, the Jalisco state prosecutor's office published photos of the shoes and other clothing items found at the site on a web page where families searching for relatives could see them. Following the uproar, the federal government took over the case. Gertz Manero said his office would make those pieces of evidence available to those looking for missing relatives. During Elections Get campaign news, insight, analysis and commentary delivered to your inbox during Canada's 2025 election. He said the state Human Rights Commission had formally told local authorities about the ranch in 2021, but nothing was apparently done. Some 15 people have been arrested, including three local police from the neighboring town of Tala and a member of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel who worked as a recruiter. Mexico has struggled with a plague of disappearances for decades and the official count now exceeds 127,000. ____ Follow AP's coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
