Miami (September 26, 2023) - The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) expressed dismay at the murder of a journalist during an attack on municipal police officers in Mexico. The organization called on the authorities to find those responsible for the crime, while deploring the increase in insecurity in the country.
Journalist Jesús Gutiérrez, 47, and a municipal police officer from San Luis Río Colorado, in the state of Sonora, were killed early yesterday morning in what appeared to be a direct attack on law enforcement officers. Three other police officers were wounded. The state prosecutor's office believes the journalist was a collateral victim.
Michael Greenspon, IAPA president and Global Head of Licensing & Print Innovation for The New York Times, and Carlos Jornet, chairman of the IAPA's Committee on Freedom of the Press and Information and editor of the Argentine newspaper La Voz del Interior, were shocked by the journalist's murder."Mexico continues to demonstrate a high level of insecurity. We reiterate our demand to the authorities to investigate and solve the attacks against journalists and guarantee they can work freely."
Several individuals in a vehicle fired shots at Gutiérrez and police officers who were talking in the street near the journalist's home. Gutiérrez was the owner and reporter for the Facebook news portal NotiFace. He covered the police source.
IAPA is a non-profit organization dedicated to defending and promoting freedom of the press and expression in the Americas. It comprises more than 1,300 publications from the western hemisphere and is based in Miami, Florida, United States.
