The tourism secretary of Colima resigned yesterday two days after a man was killed in his home during an attack perpetrated by armed civilians.
Efraín Angulo Rodríguez appeared at a press conference with a badly bruised face and said he was leaving his position to concentrate on initiating legal action against those responsible for the crime, and didn’t want the case to be used against the state government.
Angulo said that at about 7:00pm Monday a dozen armed men “looking for money and drugs” entered his Manzanillo home where he was hosting a party for 10 male guests.
“A large number of unknown individuals burst into [my home] with an astonishing quantity of weapons. They tied us up, undressed us, beat us and took multiple photographs and videos of us,” he said.
Angulo added that he and the other guests were tortured for at least three hours and that one of them was taken to a room and strangled to death.
He said he didn’t personally know the man who was killed, explaining that he was a friend of a friend.
“While they were murdering him, two of the guests at my home managed to untie themselves and confront the criminals . . .” the former official said.
One of the armed men shot at the guests, wounding one, before fleeing in a state government vehicle with money and objects of value they removed from Angulo’s home.
Naked photos of the former secretary and his house guests appeared on social media yesterday after which some people claimed that the men were participating in a gay orgy.
Angulo described the “lies” and “homophobic comments” that have surfaced on social media as “regrettable.”
He said that people who made such comments and “insensitive taunts” don’t have any idea of the stress of being a victim of a violent and serious crime.
Angulo also said that he and the other guests had been revictimized by people who said that the crimes committed against them were the result of “their habits, their sexual preferences, their way of dressing and even, now, their friendships.”
He added that it was “categorically false” that the party had been “out of control” because “there was no party.”
Angulo said all of the guests have filed criminal complaints and demanded that the state attorney general’s office locate and arrest those responsible for the attack.
Source: El Universal (sp), Reforma (sp)
