“We will address public safety from a perspective of addressing the causes and not allowing impunity,” Sheinbaum said at her first campaign event. He said the cartel forces many farmers to pay a tax on each ton of corn produced.Ĭlaudia Sheinbaum, the presidential candidate for López Obrador’s Morena party in the June 2 elections, vows to stick to his approach. “What good does it do to have soldiers and National Guard in the street if they don’t do anything? They only put up crime scene tape after something has already happened,” said Amadeo Hernández Barajas, a farmer in Acambaro, a town south of Celaya. Most of Celaya’s municipal police force are former member of the federal police, earning the nickname “Fedepales,” a combination of the word “federal” and “municipal.” (AP Photo/Fernando Llano, File) López Obrador would like to rely more on the military he wants to hand over the National Guard to army control - but at the same time, he doesn’t want troops to directly confront the cartels.įILE - Municipal police officers conduct a pedestrian stop and search while on patrol in a neighborhood of Celaya, Mexico, Feb. The attackers are usually young men, often carrying an AR-15 rifle with the stock removed to make it shorter.Ĭelaya police are now sensitive to motorcycles.Ī couple of residents, who would not give their names for fear of reprisals, spoke disparagingly of the “fedepales,” accusing them of stopping motorcycles to check for stolen vehicles, and then taking the bikes.īut during a ride-along with police performing routine checks on motorcycles, other residents waved a friendly greeting. That seems to be a trend,” said a police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons. There are always two people on them, dressed in black. “Right now, most of the attacks are coming precisely from motorcycles. As Mexico’s June 2 presidential election approaches, this city lies at the crossroads of a national debate about security policy. Doctors managed to stabilize her.įILE - A member of the Mexican National Guard cordons off a crime scene where a passenger was shot dead inside a bus, in Celaya, Mexico, Feb. One shot went into the left side of my face … the bullet was lodged in my neck.”Īs blood streamed, she walked to a clinic. “I stopped at a red light, and all I saw were two men on a motorcycle shooting at me,” Estefani said. Estefani, a Celaya policewoman who would not give her last name for security reasons, narrowly escaped an attack as she drove to work in early 2023. Most of the locals who used to work as municipal police have resigned, and it’s easy to see why. They live in secure barracks and go out only to patrol, earning the nickname “Fedepales,” a combination of the word “federal” and “municipal.”īecause they’re outsiders, the new cops are less likely to have ties to the cartel, Saucedo said. Rivera Peralta, like most of his force, is a former member of the federal police. Celaya, a farming and industrial hub northwest of Mexico City, has refused to eliminate its local police force, like some cities that instead rely almost completely on soldiers and the National Guard for policing. Municipal police chat with a resident while patrolling her neighborhood in Celaya, Mexico, Wednesday, Feb. When Roman Catholic bishops announced they had met with cartel bosses in February to negotiate a truce between warring gangs, López Obrador said, “I think it is very good.” In Guanajuato state, its population just over 6 million, more police were shot to death in 2023 - about 60 - than in all of the United States.Īs Mexico’s June 2 presidential election approaches, this city lies at the crossroads of a national debate about security policy.Ĭelaya has declined to follow President Andres Manuel López Obrador’s policy of not confronting the cartels, and ignored his policy of encouraging local people to seek out peace pacts with the gangs. At least 34 police officers have been killed in this city of 500,000 people in the last three years. Welcome to Celaya, arguably the most dangerous place, per capita, to be a cop in North America. Celaya has refused to follow President Andres Manuel López Obrador’s policy of not confronting the cartels, and refused his policy of encouraging local people to seek out peace pacts with the gangs. FILE - A bus driver is comforted after witnessing a murder inside his bus, in Celaya, Mexico, Feb.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |