Mexican Mayor Assassinated Six Days After Taking Office

Amid drug war violence and corruption, politicians in Mexico have long been at risk and this year has proven to be one of the deadliest. Though Claudia Sheinbaum becoming the first female and first person of Jewish descent to become president in Mexico, many Mexican politicians continue to face assault and threats to their lives. Less than a day after the presidential election back in June, Michoacán mayor Yolanda Sánchez Figueroa was assassinated on her walk home. Then this month, Alejandro Arcos Catalán, the mayor of Chilpancingo de los Bravo, Guerrero, was murdered and beheaded just six days after being sworn into office and a day before Sheinbaum was sworn in. A photo of his severed head found on top of a pick-up truck quickly spread across social media. His government secretary Francisco Tapia, was also shot and killed a few days before. The police are currently investigating the 43-year-old’s murder, which has yet to reveal a motive or suspects, Reuters reported.

“I strongly condemn the murder of the Mayor of Chilpancingo, Alejandro Arcos Catalán, a fact that the State Attorney General’s Office has confirmed, initiating the relevant investigations to clarify it and bring those responsible to justice, without giving way to impunity. His loss has saddened all of Guerrero society and fills us with indignation,” said Evelyn Salgado, the governor of Guerrero, in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Just this year alone, six political candidates were killed in the weeks leading up to the then-upcoming election in June, Reuters reported. The state of Guerrero specifically has also become known as one of the most violent and deadliest states for public officials. In fact, days before Arcos Catalán’s murder, his secretary Francisco Tapia was shot and killed and Ulises Hernández Martínez, a former special forces officer who was set to serve as Arcos’s security chief, was shot multiple times the day before his inauguration. Arcos Catalán died the most violently out of all of them, with his head being severed and displayed on top of a pickup truck, his body still in the passenger seat inside. Up until then, he’d been using his few days in office assisting with disaster relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane John, which hit the city of Acapulco and caused flooding. He also reportedly previously stated that he refused to negotiate with gangs or criminal groups.

“I’ve lived here all my life … and it’s here that I want to die – but I want to die fighting for my city,” Arcos Catalán previously stated, The Guardian reported.

Despite the rising violence that shows no signs of stopping, President Sheinbeum has confirmed her commitment to the “hugs, not bullets” policy of former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, which has left many fellow politicians frustrated. In 2023, 30,000 murders happened in Mexico and the country was home to 11 of the world’s 50 most murderous cities (including Chilpancingo) that year, according to the Instituto Igarapé, a leading thinktank in Brazil. While no suspects have been named in the Arcos Catalán murder, The Guardian reported that the city has had issues with criminal organizations, Los Ardillos and Los Tlacos.

The investigation is currently ongoing.