Current:Home > ScamsMexican photojournalist found shot to death in his car in Ciudad Juarez near U.S. border-LoTradeCoin
Mexican photojournalist found shot to death in his car in Ciudad Juarez near U.S. border
View Date:2024-12-24 07:06:13
A photographer for a newspaper in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez, which has been dominated by drug cartels, was found shot to death, prosecutors said Thursday.
The body of news photographer Ismael Villagómez was found in the driver's seat of a car Thursday in Ciudad Juarez, a violence-plagued city across the border from El Paso, Texas.
Villagómez's newspaper, the Heraldo de Juarez, said he was found dead in a car that he had registered to use for work for a ride-hailing app. Given low salaries, it is not uncommon for journalists in Mexico to hold down more than one job. The newspaper said his phone was not found at the scene.
In a tweet, press freedom organization Article 19 said Villagómez was found murdered in the car at about 1:30 a.m. on Thursday.
Ciudad Juarez has been dominated by drug cartels and their turf battles for almost two decades, and gangs often object to photos of their victims or their activities being published.
Last year in Ciudad Juarez, two prison inmates were shot dead and 20 were injured in a riot involving two rival gangs. Local media said both groups were linked to the Sinaloa cartel, whose former leader, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, is serving a life sentence in the United States.
Carlos Manuel Salas, a prosecutor for the northern border state of Chihuahua, said authorities are investigating whether Villagómez had a fare at the time, or whether the killing was related to his work as a photographer.
The Committee to Protect Journalists made an urgent call for authorities to investigate the killing.
His death was the fifth instance of a journalist being killed in Mexico so far in 2023.
In September, Jesús Gutiérrez, a journalist who ran a community Facebook news page, was killed in the northern Mexico border town of San Luis Rio Colorado when he was apparently caught in the crossfire of an attack aimed at police.
Prosecutors in the northern border state of Sonora said Gutiérrez was talking with the police officers, who were his neighbors, when they were hit by a hail of gunfire, killing one policeman and wounding the other three. They said Gutiérrez's death was "collateral" to the attack on the police.
In May, a journalist who was also a former local official was shot dead in the country's central Puebla region. Marco Aurelio Ramirez, 69, was killed in broad daylight as he left his home in the town of Tehuacan. He had worked for decades for several different media outlets.
At least two other journalists have been killed so far this year in Mexico, which has become one of the deadliest places in the world for journalists outside a war zone.
In the past five years alone, the Committee to Protect Journalists documented the killings of at least 52 journalists in Mexico.
Last year was the deadliest in recent memory for Mexican journalists, with 15 killed. That year, Mexico was one of the deadliest places for journalists, second only to Ukraine.
At least three of those journalists were murdered in direct retaliation for their reporting on crime and political corruption, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Villagómez's death came on the same day that the Committee to Protect Journalists presented its 2023 International Press Freedom Award to Mexican journalist María Teresa Montaño.
In 2021, three unidentified men abducted and threatened to kill Montaño, then a freelance investigative reporter, as she attempted to board a public bus. Montaño told the group that she had been working on a corruption investigation involving state officials, and the men who kidnapped her stole notes and files concerning the investigation.
"Honoring Montaño with this year's IPFA is a powerful recognition of independent regional journalism in Mexico, where reporters often face extreme violence committed with impunity," the group said.
- In:
- Mexico
- Cartel
veryGood! (5)
Related
- When is 'The Golden Bachelorette' finale? Date, time, where to watch Joan Vassos' big decision
- New York Community Bancorp tries to reassure investors, but its stock falls again
- Erection shockwave therapy may help with erectile dysfunction, but it's shrouded in shame
- Sébastien Haller fires Ivory Coast into Africa Cup final against Nigeria. Hosts beat Congo 1-0
- Voters in California city reject measure allowing noncitizens to vote in local races
- 'Lisa Frankenstein' review: Goth girl meets cute corpse in Diablo Cody's horror rom-com
- The Best Valentine’s Day Flower Deals That Will Arrive on Time
- Sebastián Piñera, former president of Chile, dies in helicopter accident
- Brands Our Editors Are Thankful For in 2024
- King Charles III's cancer, Prince Harry and when family crises bring people together
Ranking
- GM recalling big pickups and SUVs because the rear wheels can lock up, increasing risk of a crash
- Michael Strahan's Daughter Isabella Shares How She's Preparing for Chemo After Brain Cancer Diagnosis
- Treasury rolls out residential real estate transparency rules to combat money laundering
- Sebastián Piñera, former president of Chile, dies in helicopter accident
- New Mexico secretary of state says she’s experiencing harassment after the election
- Trump's ballot eligibility is headed to the Supreme Court. Here's what to know about Thursday's historic arguments.
- Lloyd Howell may be fresh NFLPA voice, but faces same challenge — dealing with owners
- Video shows New York man driving truck into ocean off Daytona Beach in bizarre scene
Recommendation
-
Will Trump curb transgender rights? After election, community prepares for worst
-
Blake Lively’s Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Role Almost Went to Olivia Wilde & Mischa Barton
-
Britney Spears Reveals She Forgot She Made Out With Ben Affleck
-
Erection shockwave therapy may help with erectile dysfunction, but it's shrouded in shame
-
Is Kyle Richards Finally Ready to File for Divorce From Mauricio Umansky? She Says...
-
You're never too young: Tax season is here and your kids may owe money to the IRS.
-
GOP says Biden has all the power he needs to control the border. The reality is far more complicated
-
Studies cited in case over abortion pill are retracted due to flaws and conflicts of interest