Yet another Mexican candidate was murdered on early Thursday morning, just days ahead of the July 1 general elections, bringing the total number of politicians killed since September 2017 to 121. Fernando Angeles Juarez, the mayoral candidate for the Democratic Revolution Party in Ocampo, was gunned down leaving his hotel Posada del Bosque in the state of Michoacan. Angeles died at the scene and no suspects have yet been identified. His death brings the number of politicians murdered since September 2017 to 121, making this the most violent electoral season in Mexico’s history. Hours before, Omar Gomez Lucatero, an independent candidate for mayor of Aguililla in Michoacan, was murdered Wednesday night next to the local cemetery, close to a military barracks.
The governor of Michoacan vowed to carry out detailed investigations to find the people responsible.
According to local newspapers, Gomez was shot dead exiting his home in Las Palomas community, in Tierra Caliente. The region is located between the states of Mexico, Guerrero and Michoacan, and is plagued with criminal organizations, including the Jalisco Nueva Generacion and the Nueva Familia Michoacana cartels.
In a video uploaded to social media, the cousin of Gomez Lucatero says an armed group arrived at the candidate’s house and forced everybody to leave before executing him. He blames the local candidate of the Revolutionary Institutional Party (PRI), Osvaldo Maldonado, for the murder.
Full Article: Mexico: More Mayoral Candidates Murdered Days Before Elections | News | teleSUR English.