Violence erupts in Veracruz city after local priest kidnapped

Record ID: 78993

  • Title: Violence erupts in Veracruz city after local priest kidnapped
  • Date: 13th November 2016
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF POSTER WITH PHOTO OF SANCHEZ READING: "BRING HIM BACK ALIVE. WE WANT HIM ALIVE"
  • Embargoed: 28th November 2016 19:33
  • Keywords: kidnapping Jorge Luis Sanchez Ruiz crime
  • Location: CATEMACO, VERACRUZ, MEXICO
  • City: CATEMACO, VERACRUZ, MEXICO
  • Country: Mexico
  • Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Crime
  • Reuters ID: LVA00258A2C77
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:Violence broke out in a Veracruz city on Saturday (November 12) as residents protested the kidnapping of a local priest.
    Angry demonstrators burned the local government building, attacked a police patrol and looted the mayor's office, alleging that Father Jorge Luis Sanchez was taken by municipal police.
    Residents began holding protests and blocking roadways in the city on Friday (November 11) after the priest went missing.
    Alfonso Moreno, the Director of Operations of the Secretariat of Public Security, said back up is being called in.
    "Now we are implementing an operation to protect the facilities, to give security to the people of Catemaco. We have approximately 300 elements of civil force, state police and authorities that support us - the prosecutor, army personnel, navy personnel," he said.
    Sanchez Ruiz is a popular priest, known for demonstrating against electricity fees as well as speaking out against the region's recent wave of violence.
    "We are going to begin an operation to search for the priest of Catemaco. We have precise instructions from the governor to search, to use the local population and to find the whereabouts of this person," said Moreno.
    In September, two priests from other areas were kidnapped and killed.
    According to a local catholic organization, Centro Catolico Multimedial, 28 priests have been killed in Mexico since 2006.
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