Between January and September of this year, the incidence of nine crimes increased compared to 2023.
The former governor of Tabasco, Carlos Manuel Merino Campos, left his successor, Javier May Rodríguez, with a security crisis in the state, with increases in the commission of nine crimes between January and September 2024 compared to the same period in 2023: drug dealing, kidnapping, and intentional homicide, according to the Municipal Statistical Compendium issued by the State Attorney General’s Office (FGE).
Drug dealing, far from decreasing compared to August, when its growth was 695.2 percent, registered an increase of 800 percent in September compared to the first nine months of 2023, rising from 21 to 189 cases.
Regarding kidnapping, the FGE report reveals that from January to September 2023, nine cases were recorded, while in the same period of 2024, the number increased to 27, resulting in a 200 percent increase. Intentional homicides rose from 177 to 509 year-over-year, equivalent to a 188 percent increase.
Other crimes that showed an increase were violent robbery, which rose from 379 to 789 incidents; commercial robbery, which increased from 631 to 1,083; extortion, which rose from 72 cases to 112; femicide, which went from 13 to 18; car theft, which increased from 665 to 889; and motorcycle theft, which rose from 957 to 1,027 cases.
Considering this scenario, the head of the State Secretariat of Public Security and Citizen Protection (SSPC) of Tabasco, Víctor Hugo Chávez Martínez, indicated that Centro, Comalcalco, and Cárdenas are considered red zones in terms of security due to the increase in various crimes.
Chávez Martínez stated that coordination with the Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena) and the National Guard (GN) has been strengthened, with joint operations being carried out in these municipalities to reduce crime rates and restore peace to the citizens.
Before taking office, the current governor of Tabasco, Javier May Rodríguez, proposed a new security strategy for the state, which includes training and education for security personnel, the reactivation of the Police Academy, as well as personnel promotion. Additionally, he aims to address the root causes of insecurity, such as addictions and drug use, focusing on prevention and supporting young people through integration centers.
On September 27, May Rodríguez confirmed General Víctor Hugo Chávez Martínez as the head of the State Secretariat of Public Security and Citizen Protection.
“We will address the causes that generate violence and strengthen prevention and the police institution. We will restore peace in Tabasco,” the governor stated on his social media.
Last Monday, Chávez Martínez announced that military personnel would occupy the positions of Public Security directors in 11 municipalities. “We seek to have command coordination, to be coordinated based on the unity of doctrine, which we all have based on all the training we have received since joining the armed forces.”
According to daily reports from the National Security Commission, 33 intentional homicides have been recorded in October, five of them on the third day of the month.
On October 10, a wave of violence was recorded in various parts of Tabasco, where armed individuals set fire to several branches of the Súper Sánchez chain, two Oxxo stores, a plastics distributor, and a gas station.
Several Vehicles Set on Fire in Villahermosa, Jalapa, and Nacajuca
Additionally, there were shootouts on the Villahermosa-Teapa highway, where two police officers were injured during an attack, and a civilian was wounded in another assault when criminals shot at a passenger bus.
Following the violent incidents, several businesses closed early, and schools suspended activities.
Meanwhile, the Juárez Autonomous University of Tabasco closed the main gate of the Academic Division of Agricultural Sciences, located in the La Huasteca ranch, and requested support from the National Guard. CBETis 136, TecMilenio Campus, the Technological Institute of Villahermosa, and other institutions also suspended classes.
The state government spokesperson, Fernando Vázquez Rosas, confirmed reports of at least 20 violent incidents in the state that day.
Elements of the Secretariat of Public Security and Citizen Protection, the Army, and the National Guard deployed ground and air patrols in the areas where the incidents occurred.
Source: El Sol de Mexico
