A Mexican journalist was killed on Wednesday when he left his home, his employer, the local newspaper Expreso, has disclosed. The death of Antonio de la Cruz follows at least eight other media workers killed in Mexico this year for their journalistic work, says human rights organization Article 19.
De la Cruz lived in Ciudad Victoria, the capital of the state of Tamaulipas, just south of the US state of Texas. Mexico’s northern border states are very violent because of the battle of competing drug cartels for lucrative smuggling routes.
Local journalists reporting on crime and corruption are especially vulnerable. Early indications suggest “that his murder may be linked to his political criticism” as a journalist, Leopoldo Maldonado, regional director of Article 19 in Mexico and Central America, told news agency Reuters†
The journalist’s daughter was injured in the attack and is in critical condition, according to Governor Francisco Garcia Cabeza de Vacas. “We will not stop until we find those responsible, and we will punish them with the full weight of the law,” the governor said.
The newspaper’s parent company, Expreso-La Razon, is demanding justice. The Tamaulipas Attorney General is investigating the case and said police are collecting evidence and hunting the attackers.