Truck drivers are blocking the Mexico-Querétaro highway near Jilotepec, heading towards Mexico City. Meanwhile, protesters are gathering at the Tepotzotlán tollbooth, demanding the whereabouts of 69-year-old truck driver Fernando Galindo Salvador, who disappeared on October 30 in the municipality of Jilotepec.
Before 6:00 a.m., truck drivers began to gather at the Tepotzotlán toll plaza and remain in the vicinity of the tollbooth, waiting to march to the Zócalo in Mexico City. This comes after the Alliance of Independent Truck Drivers of the Mexican Republic demanded that the Attorney General’s Office of the State of Mexico (FGJEM) locate the missing man alive.
The FGJEM issued an urgent bulletin to locate Fernando Galindo, who disappeared on October 30 and was last seen in the town of San Lorenzo Octeyuco, in the municipality of Jilotepec.
According to the alliance’s call to action, groups of truckers departed from the municipalities of Jilotepec, Atlacomulco, Lerma, Santiago Tianguistenco, Valle de Bravo, Toluca, Naucalpan, Cuautitlán Izcalli, Coyotepec, and others.
They are demanding that the State of Mexico government put a stop to extortion, robberies, and disappearances of truckers.
This time, they fear for the safety of Fernando Galindo and express their solidarity with the family, friends, and colleagues of the truck driver.
With this case, the number of disappearances of truck drivers in the Jilotepec region rises to three. In two cases, the victims, who were kidnapped to pay extortion money, were rescued.
Thus, on July 22, truckers partially blocked the Mexico-Querétaro, Mexico-Pachuca, and Arco Norte highways for more than seven hours, demanding the safe return of 38-year-old Bernardo Aldana Becerril, coordinator of the Alliance of Truckers and Merchants of Mexico (ACME) in Jilotepec.
The leader was rescued alive the following day in the municipality of Soyaniquilpan, where six people were arrested.
Similarly, on August 25 of this year, truckers, family members, neighbors, and taxi drivers staged intermittent blockades on the Mexico-Querétaro highway heading towards Mexico City, near the municipality of Soyaniquilpan, demanding that the Attorney General’s Office locate 25-year-old Carlos Cornelio Ortega, who disappeared on August 22 after refusing to pay extortion money.
This Monday, before 6:00 a.m., protesters arrived at the Tepotzotlán weigh station; Before 8:00 a.m., protesters began blocking the highway near Jilotepec, heading towards Mexico City.
The Arco Norte highway is blocked in both directions.
The Arco Norte highway remains blocked in both directions this Monday, after members of the Alliance of Independent Truckers of the Mexican Republic (Alianza de Autotransportistas Autónomos de la República Mexicana A.C.) began a protest demanding the safe return of Fernando Galindo, a trucker from Jilotepec, who disappeared days earlier.
Since early morning, the protesters have closed the road at kilometer 50+800, affecting traffic in both directions, towards Atlacomulco and Texmelucan.
The National Guard reported that, heading towards Atlacomulco, the last open exit is the Tula 2 toll plaza, while towards Texmelucan, the alternative is the Jilotepec toll plaza.
The mobilization is part of a series of blockades organized by the trucking union on various highways across the country, including the Mexico-Querétaro highway near Jorobas. The protesters are demanding intervention from all three levels of government to curb the violence plaguing the sector, stating that highway robberies, kidnappings, and extortion have become a daily occurrence.
In a statement, the Alliance maintained that insecurity has particularly affected the State of Mexico and that the disappearance of their colleague reflects the lack of protection for those working in freight and passenger transport.
State and federal authorities urged motorists to avoid the area and use alternate routes while negotiations continue with representatives of the organization to reopen the road.
Source: jornada
