Crime worsened in 10 of 17 municipalities where forces were deployed

April 29, 2019

A burning bus forms a roadblock in Reynosa, where murders surged 225%.

The February deployment of 10,200 police and military personnel to the 17 most violent municipalities has been less than successful in 10 of them.

Homicides increased between January and March in five of those municipalities, of which Reynosa, Tamaulipas, was the worst example with a 225% spike.

There were 15% to 50% more homicides in Uriangato, Salamanca and Celaya in Guanajuato; Monterrey, Nuevo León; and Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua.

Homicide numbers remained unchanged in Manzanillo, Colima, and Tlajomulco de Zúñiga, Jalisco, while they were down in Tijuana, Baja California; Irapuato, Guanajuato; Acapulco and Chilpancingo, Guerrero; Guadalajara, Jalisco; Ecatepec, México state; Cancún, Quintana Roo; Culiacán, Sinaloa; and Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas.

When all crimes are taken into account, 10 of the 17 municipalities saw an increase of between 1% and 22%.

The worst hit between January and March were Monterrey, Nuevo Laredo and Chilpancingo, where crime rose by 22%, 19% and 16% respectively.

According to an analysis by the National Public Security System, 35% of all homicides occurred in the 17 municipalities. In an effort to reverse the trend, a 600-strong deployment of federal forces was sent to each of those locations on February 6.