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October 30, 2010: SMACKDOWN IN THE PLAZA
At approximately 1:20 yesterday afternoon Jesus Ruben Maldonado Marmolejo, alias ‘el Dragon’ and Jose Maria Gonzalez, aka ‘el Guero’ (the Blond) aka ‘el Chema’, were walking down the steps in front of the Santo Domingo church in the heart of Oaxaca’s Central Historical District when two red and white motorcycles pulled up next to them. Gunmen riding on the back of the bikes opened fire and el Dragon and el Guero went down in a hail of hot lead.
Even though it was midday in one of the most crowded and trafficked areas of the city, the assassins escaped.
The police showed up, removed the two bodies, scoured the crime scene for bullet casings and hosed the blood off the stones. They tracked down el Dragon’s Black Hummer, which was parked a few blocks away, and discovered 3 cases of 9 mm cartridges, 3 cell phones and a portfolio containing suspicious “diverse documents.”
Exactly three hours later Jon and I were standing at the center of the crime scene, unaware of what had taken place earlier. We were watching a group of children gather for a Halloween parade. We first learned about the murders from friends that night just as we sat down for a lecture at the Biblioteca Henestorsa entitled Music and Death in the Oaxaca Valley.
This morning, as is the custom around here, both Imparcial & Noticas, the local daily papers, featured large color photos of the bullet ridden bodies in the plaza.
I don’t wish to speak ill of the dead, but it was probably a poor decision on the part of Marmolejo to assume a macho nickname like ‘el Dragon.’ Isn’t this just inviting trouble? Wouldn’t it be better to be known as, say, el hombre querido (the beloved man) or el hombre compasivo (the compassionate man)?
But this was the least of their bad life choices. Gonzalez had been arrested in 2007 for fraud and Marmolejo was described in the press as a henchman (un esbirro) and bodyguard of a general secretary in the moribund Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Jorge “el Chucky” Franco Vargas. Vargas is named after the murderous doll in the American slasher movies. Shouldn’t a nickname like that automatically preclude one from a position of public authority?
The papers also reported that both men were porros. A porro is a member of a mercenary gang associated with Mexican universities. They are street thugs for hire who act as an informal paramilitary force inside universities to prevent the rise of student opposition movements. Marmolejo was a porro at the Universidad Autonoma “Benito Juarez” de Oaxaca and he organized death squads (‘las caravanas de la muerte’) against students during the 2006 uprising.
My friends suspect that el Dragon and el Guero may have been taken down by a leftist hit squad. Ulises Ruiz, current lame-duck governor of the State of Oaxaca and member of the PRI, is widely hated. He has been accused of genocide and various acts of repression against indigenous people. There are signs around the zocalo in Oaxaca calling for his prosecution and imprisonment. This summer Gabino Cue Monteagudo was elected governor by a coalition of center left voters. Perhaps el Dragon’s victims decided the moment was ripe for a settling of scores.
Of course, this is just speculation. Undoubtedly, these hombres violentos had many enemies.
Artículo del blog http://www.thereisnogap.com/
At approximately 1:20 yesterday afternoon Jesus Ruben Maldonado Marmolejo, alias ‘el Dragon’ and Jose Maria Gonzalez, aka ‘el Guero’ (the Blond) aka ‘el Chema’, were walking down the steps in front of the Santo Domingo church in the heart of Oaxaca’s Central Historical District when two red and white motorcycles pulled up next to them. Gunmen riding on the back of the bikes opened fire and el Dragon and el Guero went down in a hail of hot lead.
Even though it was midday in one of the most crowded and trafficked areas of the city, the assassins escaped.
The police showed up, removed the two bodies, scoured the crime scene for bullet casings and hosed the blood off the stones. They tracked down el Dragon’s Black Hummer, which was parked a few blocks away, and discovered 3 cases of 9 mm cartridges, 3 cell phones and a portfolio containing suspicious “diverse documents.”
Exactly three hours later Jon and I were standing at the center of the crime scene, unaware of what had taken place earlier. We were watching a group of children gather for a Halloween parade. We first learned about the murders from friends that night just as we sat down for a lecture at the Biblioteca Henestorsa entitled Music and Death in the Oaxaca Valley.
This morning, as is the custom around here, both Imparcial & Noticas, the local daily papers, featured large color photos of the bullet ridden bodies in the plaza.
I don’t wish to speak ill of the dead, but it was probably a poor decision on the part of Marmolejo to assume a macho nickname like ‘el Dragon.’ Isn’t this just inviting trouble? Wouldn’t it be better to be known as, say, el hombre querido (the beloved man) or el hombre compasivo (the compassionate man)?
But this was the least of their bad life choices. Gonzalez had been arrested in 2007 for fraud and Marmolejo was described in the press as a henchman (un esbirro) and bodyguard of a general secretary in the moribund Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Jorge “el Chucky” Franco Vargas. Vargas is named after the murderous doll in the American slasher movies. Shouldn’t a nickname like that automatically preclude one from a position of public authority?
The papers also reported that both men were porros. A porro is a member of a mercenary gang associated with Mexican universities. They are street thugs for hire who act as an informal paramilitary force inside universities to prevent the rise of student opposition movements. Marmolejo was a porro at the Universidad Autonoma “Benito Juarez” de Oaxaca and he organized death squads (‘las caravanas de la muerte’) against students during the 2006 uprising.
My friends suspect that el Dragon and el Guero may have been taken down by a leftist hit squad. Ulises Ruiz, current lame-duck governor of the State of Oaxaca and member of the PRI, is widely hated. He has been accused of genocide and various acts of repression against indigenous people. There are signs around the zocalo in Oaxaca calling for his prosecution and imprisonment. This summer Gabino Cue Monteagudo was elected governor by a coalition of center left voters. Perhaps el Dragon’s victims decided the moment was ripe for a settling of scores.
Of course, this is just speculation. Undoubtedly, these hombres violentos had many enemies.
Artículo del blog http://www.thereisnogap.com/
miércoles, 28 de diciembre de 2011
domingo, 18 de diciembre de 2011
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