Three airlines add new Mexico flights from US, Canada

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October 5, 2018

Swoop is a new Canadian carrier that will fly to three Mexican destinations.

Airlines in the United States and Canada have added new flights to Mexico that serve several destinations across the country.

• Canadian low-cost carrier Swoop will commence a twice-weekly service from Hamilton, Ontario, to Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, on January 8, 2019 and a three times weekly service from the same airport to Cancún, Quintana Roo, from January 14.

Swoop will also offer twice-weekly service from Abbotsford International Airport in British Columbia to Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlán, Sinaloa, starting January 12 and January 20 respectively.

“Mexico continues to flourish as one of the most popular vacation destinations for Canadians,” said Steven Greenway, president of Swoop, an ultra low-cost carrier owned by the Canadian airline WestJet. It began flying in June, operating Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

While its fares may be low, passengers must pay extra for either carry-on or checked baggage.

• American Airlines announced Tuesday that it will start a new service from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport to Durango International Airport on June 6, 2019.

• As of yesterday United Airlines increased its frequency between Newark International Airport in New Jersey and Mexico City to three flights per day.

The airline’s director of sales in Mexico, Rolf Meyer, said there was a high demand for service between the two cities.

Newark Airport is only around 25 kilometers from Manhattan, New York, and 466,000 Mexicans visited the Big Apple last year, Meyer said.

Visitor numbers to Mexico continue to increase and the country is now the sixth most visited in the world.

Tourism Secretary Enrique de la Madrid said in June that international tourism to Mexico is growing at 12% annually and that the upsurge in violent crime had not deterred foreign or domestic travelers from visiting Mexico’s beaches, magical towns and large cities.

Source: Travel Pulse (en)

Gunmen assassinate five police officers in Guaymas, Sonora

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MND Staff

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October 5, 2018

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A police vehicle that was attacked yesterday in Guaymas.

A group of armed men killed five police officers on the main street of Guaymas, Sonora, yesterday, state security authorities said.

Two attacks occurred just after midday on Aquilés Serdán Avenue in the downtown area of the port city near schools and businesses.

Gunmen in a pickup truck first opened fire on a group of six municipal police, killing three.

The three other officers were wounded and transferred by helicopter to the state capital Hermosillo, where one died.

Minutes later, the same gunmen killed a transit police officer on the same street after he tried to halt their escape.

The state Secretariat of Public Security activated a code red alert following the attacks that mobilized the army and federal and municipal forces to search for the aggressors, but no arrests were made.

Yesterday’s attack came just over two months after a video surfaced in which Guaymas municipal police officers appeared to hand over three men to individuals linked to organized crime in the beachfront community of San Carlos.

Former Guaymas mayor Lorenzo de Cima told the newspaper El Universal that according to officers’ statements, four men, who are still missing, were in fact turned over.

One of the men is reportedly a member of the Salazar family, founder of a regional gang known as Los Salazar.

Violence spiked following the incident leading the United States consulate general in Hermosillo to issue a security alert on July 31 for the cities of Guaymas, San Carlos and Empalme. The alert remains in place.

In early August, more than 200 federal and state security personnel assumed policing functions in Guaymas to reinforce security and carry out a surprise inspection of the municipal force.

Source: El Universal (sp)

Cliff divers have their sights set on next month’s world cup

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MND Staff

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October 4, 2018

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After completing another successful season at the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series, two Mexican divers have now set their sights on glory at next month’s FINA High Diving World Cup.

Adriana Jiménez and Jonathan Paredes, who finished second and third respectively in the World Series, are both strong contenders for gold at the event, which will be held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on November 9 and 10.

Jiménez, 33, won gold at the 2017 World Cup, which was also held at the Abu Dhabi Sailing and Yacht Club.

“[I’m going to] work hard this month, I don’t want to leave anything to chance . . . I want to compete the best I can . . . I’ll try to leave the pressure of being the defending champion to one side because if you place pressure on yourself, you don’t enjoy it. One advantage is that I already know the venue . . .” she said.

Paredes, 29, has also experienced success at past FINA world cups, taking home two silver medals, most recently in 2016. However, this year, he hopes to go one better.

“The goal is to get on the podium and win the gold medal . . . It’s one of the only things I’m missing in my sporting career, winning gold at an official competition and I hope that it happens in Abu Dhabi,” he said.

Both Jiménez and Paredes will again compete in the Red Bull World Series in 2019 and also have one eye on the 2019 World Aquatics Championships that will be held in Gwangju, South Korea.

Source: Milenio (sp)

Conditions required improvisation, says coroner of sidewalk autopsy

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César Hernández

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October 4, 2018

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Coroner takes a call during sidewalk surgery.

Oaxaca coroner Lázaro Ramírez Jiménez says he was forced to improvise when he conducted an autopsy on the sidewalk outside the cemetery at Santiago Jamiltepec.

In an interview with the newspaper Milenio, Ramírez explained that he arrived at the Jamiltepec cemetery late Saturday evening only to find that municipal authorities had already left.

When cemetery staff refused to let him in to conduct an autopsy, the medical examiner decided to improvise and conduct the procedure on the street.

Photos of Ramírez’s pop-up operating theater were posted online and local authorities expressed their concern and denounced his conduct.

Milenio said Ramírez works in the expert services department at the state Attorney General’s office. He completed his medical studies at the Benito Juárez Autonomous University of Oaxaca and recently did training in forensic sciences courtesy of the United States embassy.

Before working for the FGE, Ramírez was director of the regional hospitals in Pinotepa de Don Luis and in Puerto Escondido, both in the state of Oaxaca, where he was described as a “model professional.”

Source: Milenio (sp)

Stock up on water to prepare for shutdown, Mexico City residents told

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MND Staff

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October 4, 2018

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A lot of people will be filling water containers at the end of the month in Mexico City.

More than four million Mexico City residents will have no running water for up to five days at the end of the month due to maintenance of the capital’s main water system.

The suspensions to the Cutzamala system will start on the night of October 31 and continue until November 4, affecting 13 of Mexico City’s 16 boroughs.

Four of those — Miguel Hidalgo, Cuauhtémoc, Cuajimalpa y Álvaro Obregón — will face total cuts during the five-day period, while a further nine will be partially affected.

Mexico City Mayor José Ramón Amieva said the National Water Commission (Conagua) had planned to carry out repair and maintenance work next week but was persuaded to postpone the work.

The dates coincide with annual Day of the Dead celebrations, meaning that many Mexicans will be off work and school for at least part of the period.

The Mexico City government advised residents to prepare for the cut by stocking up on water before it begins, adding that water tankers will be used to supply hospitals, schools, prisons and other public places.

The cut to the Cutzamala system will also affect 13 México state municipalities, including many in the greater Mexico City area as well as the state capital Toluca.

For up to three days after the maintenance work concludes, water pressure is predicted to be weak but the system will return to normal by November 8, authorities said.

Source: El Heraldo de México (sp) , Noticieros Televisa (sp)

Green balls on Sonora beach are made of marine algae

By

Tony Richards

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October 4, 2018

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Mysterious green balls on the beach in Sonora. — Mysterious green balls on a beach in Sonora.

The “aliens’ eggs” that showed up on a Sonora beach last weekend are nothing more than balls of harmless marine algae, according to local officials.

The eggs term appeared among social media users after no one could say initially what precisely the green balls were, apart from the fact they looked like either avocados, coconuts or balls with a velvet surface.

Thousands of them appeared on the beach at Huatabampito in southern Sonora, located about 350 kilometers south of the state capital, Hermosillo.

The municipal ecology and tourism director explained that expert studies indicated that the balls were made up of marine algae that posed no threat to humans or the environment.

Medarbo Nieblas Márquez said the balls form offshore in rough seas.

A similar phenomenon was seen in Sydney, Australia, in 2014.

Source: El Financiero (sp)

Petroleum theft hard to stop because mayors, Pemex involved: energy secretary

By

MND Staff

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October 4, 2018

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A Pemex truck drives past a pipeline theft in progress in a video shot earlier this year.

Stopping petroleum theft is difficult because mayors and Pemex are involved in the crime, Mexico’s energy secretary says.

Speaking during a visit to Guanajuato yesterday, Pedro Joaquín Coldwell said that the “many roots” of the crime have made it “hard to eradicate,” explaining that “there are personnel inside the company [Pemex] who are complicit with criminals.”

He added that the federal government is currently implementing a new strategy to combat the scourge, which includes greater cooperation between the Secretariat of Finance (SHCP) and Pemex in the sharing of information as well as increased coordination between federal, state and municipal security authorities.

Petroleum theft, committed by gangs of thieves known as huachicoleros, costs Pemex 30 billion pesos (US $1.6 billion) a year, CEO Carlos Treviño said in April.

Elaborating on Coldwell’s remarks, Federal Police Commissioner Miguel Ángel Simental said that while complicity of mayors in the crime has been detected in Puebla, there is no evidence to suggest the same has happened in Guanajuato.

“There have been no cases here in which municipal officials were involved, and now with the change of strategy there will be improved investigations in coordination with Pemex, the federal Attorney General’s office and the federal taxation administration . . .” he said.

Earlier this week, the navy carried out an operation against pipeline fuel theft in Palmarito Tochapan, Puebla, to which residents responded by blocking the Mexico City-Puebla highway for more than six hours.

The mayor-elect of Quecholac, where Palmarito is located, is reportedly a person of interest to authorities in relation to the crime although he denies any involvement.

In August, Federal Police arrested the wife of the mayor of Venustiano Carranza, Puebla, on suspicion of petroleum theft.

Source: El Financiero (sp)

Dead crocodile in Puerto Vallarta carried message: control crocs or more will die

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César Hernández

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October 4, 2018

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Crocodile hangs from a tree with a message attached.

Too many crocodiles in Puerto Vallarta? Someone seems to think so.

A dead crocodile was found hanging from a tree on Tuesday in the Villas Universidad neighborhood with a message attached to its head.

“We want security. We will continue killing these disgusting animals if controls are not put in place by . . . the government of Puerto Vallarta,” the message said in Spanish.

The incident is being investigated by the federal public prosecutor’s office in Puerto Vallarta and the federal environmental protection agency, Profepa.

Meanwhile, Profepa is collaborating with the navy, the University of Guadalajara, the municipal government and state and municipal agencies to all reports of crocodiles in the urban zone of the municipality.

Profepa has urged the local government to install even more signs in areas where there is a high risk of contact between people and the reptiles to avoid incidents such as two that occurred in recent weeks.

A man was killed by a crocodile in the Ameca river while a tourist was injured by one in a tourist area in the north of the city.

In the latter case a 30-year-old French woman had gone into the water on the beach in front of the Marriott Hotel at about 11:30pm when she felt something bite her leg. She began kicking her leg and ran for the beach, calling for help.

Hotel security guards responded and called an ambulance.

She was treated in a private hospital for minor injuries and released shortly after.

A total of six crocodiles have been found dead since 2017 in the Puerto Vallarta area. Intentional or accidental human intervention was a factor in five of those cases.

Source: Vallarta Independiente (sp), Noticias PV (sp)

AMLO pledges coordination and unity to combat Guerrero crime

By

MND Staff

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October 4, 2018

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Governor Astudillo, left, and AMLO meet in Guerrero.

President-elect López Obrador has pledged that federal, state and municipal authorities will work together to combat insecurity in Guerrero.

López Obrador made the commitment yesterday after holding a “very productive” meeting with Governor Héctor Astudillo in Acapulco.

“We’re going to work in a coordinated way on the issue that people are very worried about: that of security and violence. We’re also going to ensure that there is order, that there is coordination and the Mando Único [a single-command policing system],” he said.

“We also agreed to join forces, we’re going to work in an organized manner . . . There will be unity between the Secretariat of Defense, the Secretariat of the Navy, the Secretariat of Public Security, the state government and the municipalities,” the president-elect added.

Guerrero, a large opium poppy and marijuana-producing state, recorded the third highest number of homicides in the first eight months of 2018 behind only Baja California and Guanajuato.

Federal and state police and the military took over policing duties in Acapulco last week after the entire municipal force was disarmed due to suspected infiltration by criminal gangs.

Last year, The Washington Post described the resort city as Mexico’s murder capital.

Violent crime, however, afflicts many parts of Guerrero including state capital Chilpancingo, the notoriously dangerous Tierra Caliente region and the Montaña region, where poppy cultivation has driven the economies of many communities for decades.

In Chilpancingo today, the mayor lamented that security efforts were hampered by a shortage of resources. Antonio Gaspar Beltrán said the municipal police force consists of just 120 officers, 580 short of what it needs.

He said a request for more funds will be made to the federal government. The municipality of Chilpancingo has a population of at least 200,000.

Guerrero is one of Mexico’s most impoverished, a fact that López Obrador recognized yesterday.

He said that his government will aim to stimulate economic development in Guerrero to help people “to get ahead” and reaffirmed his commitment to move the federal Secretariat of Health to the state.

Source: El Financiero (sp), Milenio (sp)

Ex-governor of Tamaulipas will go to trial for unlawful enrichment

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César Hernández

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October 4, 2018

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Former Tamaulipas governor Eugenio Hernández Flores will go to trial on new charges of unlawful enrichment and conducting financial operations with resources of illicit origin after a marathon 14-hour hearing yesterday.

The state Attorney General’s office now has three months to finish its investigation, including a background check on the ex-governor and a report on his real estate holdings in Mexico City and Quintana Roo.

It will also request a report from a Texas court that has been investigating the former governor as well.

According to the Attorney General’s office, Hernández amassed a fortune of nearly 41 million pesos (about US $3.3 million at the time) during his term as governor between 2005 and 2010.

Hernández, 58, declared before the court that he has been a businessman since 1987, involved in real estate, construction and shopping malls.

Hernández has been in custody since his arrest a year ago for embezzlement, a case which is still in process.

The former Institutional Revolutionary Party governor also faces extradition to the United States where he faces charges of organized crime and money laundering. The Mexican government authorized his extradition in March but Hernández’s legal team has applied for an injunction, or amparo, against it.

That legal team includes the attorney for ex-Quintana Roo governor Roberto Borge, also in jail facing corruption charges, and the attorney who has defended the presumed leader of Mexico City’s Unión de Tepito, a gang that is believed responsible for much of the violence in the capital.

Source: Milenio (sp), El Financiero (sp)