HomeNewsBrief13 Homicides Reported on Peña Nieto's First Day in Office
BRIEF

13 Homicides Reported on Peña Nieto's First Day in Office

HOMICIDES / 3 DEC 2012 BY ELYSSA PACHICO EN

Over a dozen homicides were reported on December 1, the day that Enrique Peña Nieto was sworn in as Mexico's president, in an indication of the challenges that await him on the security front.

As illustrated by the map below, the bulk of the homicides took place in Zacatecas, capital of Zacatecas state, and in the city of Torreon, Coahuila.

Five bodies were found in different locations across Zacatecas city, bearing messages signed in the name of the Gulf Cartel, reported Proceso. "We gave you a chance to leave and you didn't, from now on executions will be 10 for 1," the message reportedly read.

In Torreon, two police officers and two Public Security Ministry agents were reported killed. The attacks form part of a wave of violence against police in Torreon in recent months. In another sign of the violence in the city, seven dismembered bodies were reportedly found there the day after Peña Nieto's inauguration.


View Zacatecas in a larger map

InSight Crime Analysis

In his inauguration speech, Peña Nieto stated that his first goal would be to reduce Mexico's violence. The count of 13 dead within the first 24 hours of his six-year term illustrates the challenges that lie ahead for the 46-year-old politician, who brings the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) back to the presidency. The party has been accused of turning a blind eye to Mexico's drug cartels during its 71 years in power, before it lost the presidency in 2000.

Peña Nieto has already made several concrete proposals for his security strategy, including the creation of a gendarmerie and the dissolution of the Ministry of Public Security. As InSight Crime has pointed out, some pillars of his predecesor's strategy are worth continuing, including the ongoing implementation of widespread judicial reforms, which have radically changed the way Mexico conducts trials. But there are other pitfalls worth avoiding, including the previous government's failure to keep a public and transparent record of the missing and the dead.

share icon icon icon

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

What are your thoughts? Click here to send InSight Crime your comments.

We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article.

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

Related Content

CRIMINAL MIGRATION / 1 MAR 2023

US authorities have made several arrests that could strike a big blow to the MS13’s Mexico Program.

BELTRAN LEYVA ORG / 7 JAN 2022

Murders have spiked in Mexico's northern state of Sonora, thanks to the volatile mix of a veteran drug trafficker's alleged…

ELITES AND CRIME / 10 OCT 2022

Presidential assassination plots and the Jalisco Cartel's influence on government -- the juicy details of Mexico's SEDENA leaks.

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

All Eyes on Ecuador

2 JUN 2023

Our coverage of organized crime in Ecuador continues to be a valuable resource for international and local news outlets. Internationally, Reuters cited our 2022 Homicide Round-Up,…

WORK WITH US

Open Position: Social Media and Engagement Strategist

27 MAY 2023

InSight Crime is looking for a Social Media and Engagement Strategist who will be focused on maintaining and improving InSight Crime’s reputation and interaction with its audiences through publishing activities…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela Coverage Receives Great Reception

27 MAY 2023

Several of InSight Crime’s most recent articles about Venezuela have been well received by regional media. Our article on Venezuela’s colectivos expanding beyond their political role to control access to…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime's Chemical Precursor Report Continues

19 MAY 2023

For the second week in a row, our investigation into the flow of precursor chemicals for the manufacture of synthetic drugs in Mexico has been cited by multiple regional media…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Chemical Precursor Report Widely Cited

THE ORGANIZATION / 12 MAY 2023

We are proud to see that our recently published investigation into the supply chain of chemical precursors feeding Mexico’s synthetic drug production has been warmly received.