| Mexico Government 'Complicit' in Mass Grave of Human Skulls, Official Says |
| Written by <a href="index.php?option=com_comprofiler&task=userProfile&user=33791"><span class="small">teleSUR</span></a> |
| Saturday, 18 March 2017 13:33 |
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Excerpt: "Veracruz Attorney General Jorge Winckler Ortiz on Thursday accused the Mexican government of knowing about the mass grave of at least 242 bodies that was discovered in his state earlier this week."
ALSO SEE: Mexico: Over 250 Skulls Mexico Government 'Complicit' in Mass Grave of Human Skulls, Official Says18 March 17
On Tuesday, over 250 human skulls were discovered at the Colinas de Santa Fe area, near the Veracruz harbor.
“It is impossible for anyone to have realized what happened here, and that vehicles were coming in and out, if not with the complicity of government authority,” Ortiz said, HispanTV reports. “I do not understand how else.” On Tuesday, over 250 human skulls were discovered at the Colinas de Santa Fe area, near the Veracruz harbor. Earliest traces of the mass grave were found in August by the Colectivo Solecito, a grassroots organization of relatives of Mexico’s disappeared. Ortiz, who is in charge of investigating the discovery, believes the skulls belong to victims of drug cartels. He is currently waiting for US$1.8 million promised by the Mexican government to buy sample materials to identify the remains. Despite having to depend on federal authorities who are believed to be “complicit” in the case, Ortiz continues to work independently with families to find answers. "They give us just the bones but at least I have them. I can keep (them) somewhere ... I can put a flower on (them)," Colectivo Solecito member Martha Gonzalez told CNN en Español. “And I can know that they are really there and resting.” Veracruz, one of Mexico’s most violent states, is home to armed conflict between drug cartels Los Zetas and Jalisco Nueva Generacion. Within the last year, over 120 graves of suspected drug war victims have been discovered, Mexico’s Secretariat of the Interior reports. Many believe Mexico’s federal government is involved in both recruiting members for these cartels and hiding the bodies of victims. On Friday, for example, policemen in Culiacan were filmed arresting eight young men before handing them over to what was believed to be an organized crime group. The incident echoed the circumstances that led to the disappearance of 43 students at the Ayotzinapa teachers' college, which sparked international outcry more than two years ago. In 2016, more than 20,000 homicides were reported across Mexico, the highest level registered since Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto took office in 2012. |
eracruz Attorney General Jorge Winckler Ortiz on Thursday accused the Mexican government of knowing about the mass grave of at least 242 bodies that was discovered in his state earlier this week. 