Two bodies, one of whom is a teenager, have been discovered by the roadside in connection with the murder of a mayor who was leading efforts to combat drug cartels. Carlos Manzo, aged 40, from Uruapan, located approximately 251 miles west of Mexico City, was fatally shot in a crowded central square during Day of the Dead festivities. Shortly thereafter, 17-year-old Miguel Angel Ubaldo Vidales was identified and killed by authorities, with an ongoing investigation into the circumstances.
The mayor had requested additional support from the Mexican central government to address drug-related crimes, while Ubaldo Vidales was found to have ties to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. The assailant, who fired six shots at the mayor, had been absent from his home for about a week.
Governor Alfedo Ramirez Bedolla confirmed that the two individuals found murdered on the road from Uruapan to Paracho, near Capacuaro, were accomplices of the individual who killed the mayor. Ramirez Bedolla expressed concern over the involvement of teenagers in cartel activities in Michoacan, where crime rates have been escalating, especially in Uruapan, renowned for its avocado industry, where farmers have been subjected to extortion by criminal groups.
An investigation is ongoing regarding the events of the attack that led to the mayor’s death, despite his security detail comprising eight private bodyguards and 14 police officers. Authorities are also probing the circumstances surrounding Ubaldo Vidales’ death following his arrest, where he was shot with a bullet.
Ramirez Bedolla stated that an inquiry is underway into the reasons behind the fatal shooting of the arrested killer during a struggle. The discovery of the murdered accomplices of the assassins further complicates the case for investigators.
In the meantime, Carlos Manzo’s widow, Grecia Quiroz, was sworn in before the State Congress to succeed her late husband as mayor, vowing to carry on his mission. Quiroz defiantly declared, “They killed Carlos Manzo, but they couldn’t kill what he awakened.”