An operation by the Attorney General’s Office in the community of El Capulín, near Nuevo Casas Grandes, Chihuahua, led to tensions between the authorities and Mennonite residents. The conflict arose over the seizure of a property containing two fuel tanks, which led to the intervention of the State Attorney General’s Office (FGE) through the local prosecutor, Alejandro Vargas, to mediate and restore peace. The Attorney General’s Office (FGR) arrested one of the members of the religious group for ‘huachicoleo’ and who had allegedly been demanded 500 thousand pesos.
“The conflict arose after, with the support of elements of the SEDENA, FGR personnel guarded the property, while a PEMEX operator extracted hydrocarbon stored there by the community. In response, the Mennonites blocked the accesses with heavy machinery, leaving the authorities incommunicado,” it was noted.
Given the growing hostility, “the State Attorney General’s Office sent the prosecutor of the Northwest Zone, Alejandro Vargas, to mediate in the conflict.”
According to the social representation of the state, when the negotiations seemed to be advancing, the situation escalated due to an attempted escape by the PEMEX operator, who tried to leave with a tanker truck loaded with approximately 15,000 liters of fuel, but was intercepted by the protesters.
After several hours of dialogue, an agreement was reached and the fuel was returned to the residents, while the PEMEX operator was placed at the disposal of the Public Ministry to determine responsibilities.
The FGR continues the investigations that led to the conflict. The State Attorney General’s Office reiterates its commitment to mediating conflicts to preserve the peace and security of the people of Chihuahua, indicated the FGE.
In the context of this conflict, a group of protesters showed up at the FGR Sub-Headquarters in Nuevo Casas Grandes, Chihuahua, to demand the return of a series of goods that federal elements seized in the house located in the El Capulín community.
Among the goods that were claimed, there are bundles of cash, surveillance cameras, a pickup truck and other items, which, according to the protesters, are unrelated to the investigations that began after the arrest of Johan Nikel.
During the protest, members of the Mennonite community asked for the dismissal of the commander of the FGR, Alfredo Cruz Pérez, who was accused of committing a series of abuses against the inhabitants of this region, “where he has generated a climate of tension and distrust towards the federal authorities,” they said.
“We are not against the operations, but they must be done correctly and without affecting innocent people,” they stressed at the demonstration.
As part of the protests, a group of Mennonites, led by Julián LeBaron, protested at the international bridge “Libre”, to demand the dismissal of the federal commander, Alfredo Cruz Pérez, who, they said, “for months has demanded sums of 500 to 800 thousand pesos from members of the community.”
Julián LeBarón, an activist and leader of the community, said that last Tuesday, a group of federal agents arbitrarily detained Johan Nikel Martens for alleged crimes of huachicoleo. “And since he did not give them the 500 thousand pesos they demanded, they arrested him.”
LeBarón added that the agents had taken photographs of him when he was selling fuel to other producers. He did indeed have a tanker with 17,500 liters that he had bought legally and proved it with invoices, and they still arrested him, the activist accused.
Source: cronica
