The body of 59-year-old Mexican journalist Luis Martín Sánchez Iniguez has recently been found in the Mexican state of Nayarit.
Sanchez Iniguez who has been missing since Wednesday was employed as a correspondent for the Mexico City newspaper La Jornada at the time of his disappearance.
The prosecutors explained, “The body was found with signs of violence, and two handwritten signs were found on it.”
This incident marks the 2nd journalist death in Mexico this year, following the 15 media-related murders in 2022.
Shortly after Sanchez Iniguez disappeared, journalist Jonathan Lora Ramírez was abducted by armed individuals. Fortunately, he was found unharmed on Saturday. However, journalist Osiris Maldonado, who went missing on July 3, remains unaccounted for.
In February, news photographer José Ramiro Araujo, 67, was fatally stabbed and beaten in northern Mexico.
These acts of violence corroborate previous findings released earlier this year by The Committee to Protect Journalists, which revealed a significant increase in journalist killings worldwide in 2022, with a total of 68 journalists losing their lives. Latin America emerged as the deadliest region for reporters last year.
Furthermore, Mexico ranks 128th on the Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index, reflecting its low level of press freedom compared to 180 countries and territories.
The Index explains that Mexico has consistently remained one of the most dangerous countries for journalists, as President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who has been in power since 2018, has yet to implement the necessary reforms and measures to halt the escalating violence against the press.
Prosecutors emphasized the connection between these violent acts and the journalists’ work, particularly noting their collaboration on joint projects related to their profession.
The investigation is centered on their journalistic activities, and if required, may be referred to the Special Prosecutor’s Office for Attention to Crimes committed against Freedom of Expression, according to the prosecutors’ statement.
