The Mexican Employers’ Confederation (Coparmex) called for extortion to be made a national priority, warning that despite the decrease in other crimes, this phenomenon is rapidly expanding due to “the lack of decisive action.”
In a statement, the organization noted that in 2025, the year-on-year change in extortion increased in 20 of the 32 states and maintained that “in almost two-thirds of the country, this crime grew compared to the previous year,” with notable increases in Tlaxcala (1,300%), Chiapas (364.3%), Mexico City (264.4%), Nayarit (171.4%), Yucatán (100%), and Puebla (84.4%).
Coparmex stated that extortion has become “one of the most persistent and damaging costs for business activity in Mexico” and maintained that it is not an isolated incident, but rather a constant pressure that affects investment decisions, increases the cost of daily operations, and limits growth capacity, particularly in certain regions.
In the same statement, it affirmed that “extortion is becoming a structural crime that continues to expand and directly affect business operations, without showing any signs of effective containment.”
As background, the Confederation indicated that between 2015 and 2025 this crime increased by 78%, rising from 6,223 to 11,081 victims annually, which—it argued—reflects that this is not a temporary problem.
Coparmex also cited the results of the #DataCoparmex survey, in which 46.8% of businesses reported being victims of at least one crime, noting that extortion was the second most frequent offense in that survey.
According to the survey, two out of every three extortions occurred by telephone, and one was “linked to an authority figure or someone appearing to be an authority figure,” which, the organization stated, exacerbates the economic damage and undermines trust in the institutions responsible for guaranteeing the rule of law.
At the institutional level, Coparmex called for “extortion to be made a national public policy priority.” While acknowledging the importance of the General Law to combat this phenomenon, the organization urged local governments to establish specialized units within their State Attorney General’s Offices, stating that strengthening the rule of law, guaranteeing effective security, and intelligently combating groups operating outside the law are essential to protecting investment and preserving formal employment.
Source: vanguardia
