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After EL UNIVERSAL revealed that Mexican soldiers ordered the execution of a civilian after a clash with alleged criminals on July 3 in Nuevo Laredo , Tamaulipas, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador asked Defense Minister Luis Cresencio Sandoval to investigate the incident.
The footage released by EL UNIVERSAL shows the moment when a soldier orders the execution of a shootout survivor. It later emerged that the criminals kidnapped three young men, who also died during the attack.
The Mexican President said this newspaper “denounced a possible crime committed by a member of the army by executing a wounded person.”
The National Defense Ministry (Sedena) told EL UNIVERSAL that “if there is a crime, the ministry investigates and sanctions. If someone commits a crime, there is no impunity.”
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López Obrador said that before he took office, the federal government ordered the armed forces to follow the special protocols to protect human rights and that his administration has reinforced these measures.
The victims’ families speak out
Raúl Tercero filed a lawsuit before the Attorney General’s Office against the Defense Ministry (Sedena) on July 11, in connection with the homicide of Damián Jenovés Tercero, his son.
Damián, who was 18, had been living in Nuevo Laredo for six months when he went missing along with his brother on June 24.
Days after his disappearance, the army presented him as one of the cartel gunmen who died on July 3. His brother is still missing.
This Monday EL UNIVERSAL revealed Damían and another two young men had been kidnapped and transported in the vehicle involved in a shooting with the Mexican army.
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Since the victims’ families filed a lawsuit weeks ago, they haven’t received a response from the Attorney General’s Office. To this day, the Sedena hasn’t provided the information requested by the family, such as the number of vehicles involved in the attack and the names of the soldiers.
The families’ legal team also requested the army to present all the weapons used during the operation, asked for the soldiers to testify, and to place all those involved in the shooting under police custody. There has been no response.
Martín Alvarado, the families’ lawyer, says that the fact they haven’t received a response from authorities is a sign that the government is protecting the soldiers involved in the incident: "We’ve always known this. They have always protected each other. The Attorney General’s Office will never take legal action against the soldiers. This is why they delay and obstruct the administration of justice.”
Federal sources revealed the Attorney General’s Office has launched an investigation and are analyzing the footage.
Alleged criminals
Eleven days after the incident, EL UNIVERSAL revealed that three civilians kidnapped by the criminals were present during the clash with security forces. The three victims were a migrant from Chiapas, a university student, and the third victim’s identity is still unknown. Although they were not cartel members, Mexican authorities included them among the 12 dead criminals.
The criminals tied up the victims ' hands and feet. Two of them died as the result of gunshots in the chest. The third one was killed by gunshot in the head.
Moreover, photographs obtained by EL UNIVERSAL show that the three victims only received one gunshot each. In contrast, the alleged cartel gunmen received dozens of gunshots each.
The victims’ families filed a lawsuit against the Sedena a week after the shooting.
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