09/28/11 – On Tuesday, September 27, five decapitated heads were found outside of an elementary school in Acapulco. Pedestrians noticed the heads, which were bundled in a bloodied sack, lying on the ground in front of the Benito Juárez Elementary School in the Garita neighborhood of town. Along with the heads, all of which were male, authorities found handwritten messages threatening drug traffickers in the area. The victims were taken to the Forensic Medical Services of Acapulco (Servicio Médico Forense, Semefo), where authorities will work to identify the remains.
The incident comes on the heels of recent violence in Acapulco, where just a day before the September 27 finding, five charred and decapitated bodies were discovered in a truck close to Garita, although their sex has yet to be identified because the burns were so severe. It is still unclear if the bodies and the heads belong to the same victims. Additional violence erupted in Acapulco, also on September 26, when 13 people were killed and four injured in various incidents throughout the city, reported Excélsior.
After the discovery of the five heads, municipal, state, and federal police were called into the area for heightened security, with the timing coinciding with mass protests in Acapulco as local teachers have been striking for more secure schools and work environments. Click here for more information on the teacher’s strike. In response to the increase in violence in general, Guerrero Attorney General (Procurador de Justicia de Guerrero) Alberto López Rosas stated that the violence will only continue as criminal organizations continue “re-acclimating and regrouping after recent detentions and arrests” of gang and cartel members by authorities in the area. He added, “We are going to fully prepare ourselves to confront this new wave of violence; there will not be a break and we are going to work to successfully calm the cities.”
Sources:
Trujillo, Javier. “Encuentran cinco cabezas cercenadas en Acapulco.” Milenio. September 27, 2011.
“Mexican police find 5 severed heads.” UPI. September 28, 2011.
