Mexican journalist Francisco Pacheco Beltrán was shot dead in front of his home on Monday, according to local press reports cited by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Pacheco, who reported for several newspapers and broadcast for a radio station, was murdered in the city of Taxco, Guerrero state.

Relatives said he was shot twice in the back of his head when he returned home in the early morning after taking one of his daughters to a bus terminal.

Another daughter told the CPJ that she and her mother were in their home at the time of the attack. They heard noises that sounded like firecrackers and found Pacheco in a pool of blood. Police said there were no witnesses to the murder.

Pacheco, 55, covered local news as a correspondent for the daily Sol de Acapulco; edited Foro de Taxco, a weekly magazine; and contributed to Capital Máxima, a radio station based in Guerrero’s state capital, Chilpancingo.

Pacheco also had a website, where he regularly posted articles on regional crime and violence.

Some reports described Pacheco’s work as critical of local authorities and especially the mayor of Taxco. But family members and colleagues said he had not reported having received any threats.

“The endless cycle of violence against Mexican journalists is devastating the local press,” said Carlos Lauría, CPJ’s senior programme coordinator for the Americas.

“Federal authorities must thoroughly investigate the execution-style murder of Francisco Pacheco Beltrán and exhaust all possible motives, including links to his work as a journalist.”

Mexico remains one of the most dangerous countries in the world to work as a journalist.



Source: CPJ