In Buenavista de los Hurtado, a municipality of Heliodoro Castillo, Guerrero, La Familia Michoacana gunmen allegedly attacked a small town using bomb drones as the town came together to slaughter and roast a pig. Then, they gunned them down, leaving 30 dead, and only one survivor, who fled and reported the massacre.
However, recent social media posts claim that no women and children were killed, only rival criminal members of “Los Tlacos.” And they blame the ‘narco politicians’ in the region for supporting the criminal group and the misinformation.
A graphic video showing at least 6 dead men, displayed on top of a pickup truck was released by the LFM gunmen.
WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES & VIDEO BELOW!
According to a complaint from the Minerva Bello Victims Human Rights Center; Buenavista de Hurtado, in Heliodoro Castillo, was the scene of a massacre with 30 dead, including men, women, and children.
Buenavista de Hurtado is said to have a population of around 35 residents.
“Yesterday I received a communication from the community, which was being attacked by drones in the afternoon, and at night, they told me that it had been attacked by armed men.” Father José Filiberto Velázquez Florencio, priest, and the Director of Central Minerva Bello, a human rights group.
Hours later, Velázquez reported the worst: “All 30 people were murdered.”
La Jornada cites a “community police” spokesman from the area. He says two injured people from the first attack arrived and said they saw at least 9 bodies. But as the force mobilized, there were further drone bombs going off and many people missing.
The community of Helidoro Castillo, on the fringes of Tlacotepec, is caught in an escalating war between the La Familia Michoacana and the Jalisco New Generation cartels. The region has been plagued by cartel violence and drone bomb attacks recently.
Velázquez claimed he heard from the community around midday on Thursday, January 4, that La Familia Michoacana was launching “explosive devices” from drones. But communications from the community soon went dark.
Later in the night, he heard from local police, who said one survivor of the attack escaped and told them that after the drone attack armed men came to the community as residents were slaughtering a pig and that “they were being mowed down.”
The human rights leader also spoke to locals in nearby communities who said they heard the attack and were terrified the same could happen to them.
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“This is a conflict that has many communities terrified,” Velázquez said.
Velázquez said neither human rights groups nor authorities had been able to enter the small town due to its remoteness and the risks. Guerrero state prosecutors confirmed there had been a “violent act” in the town and that security forces were investigating the incident.
The activist told the media that the municipal president of Heliodoro Castillo, Serafín Landa, had already informed the State government and that subsequently there was no communication with the commissioner or anyone from that community.
“In the morning a meeting was held with the director of Government Francisco Rodríguez Cisneros to propose what the true solution will be because they have been insisting that the Base of Operations be installed. If that base of operations had been there, something else would have been,” declared Velázquez.
Guerrero Public Security Secretariat deployed security elements in the area today. However, there is no official confirmation about the murder of the 30 people or the drone attack. It is based on the information provided by the survivor.
Later in a television interview, government spokesman René Posselt Aguirre said that elements of the Army, the National Guard, and state forces have already arrived in the area and are gathering information to confirm that the attack occurred.
“We cannot say that the attack existed officially,” the official said.
Contradicting Social Media Posts
La Familia Michoacana, via social media, claims that the massacre of women and children is a lie. And stated that the local “community police” are actually Los Tlacos members.
It also states that Los Tlacos is led by Onésimo “Necho” Marquina Chapa and Salvador “El Chava” Alanís Trujillo, who had called on the state prosecutor and governor of Guerrero to support Los Tlacos and send state police to fight alongside them. Many similar groups started out primarily as autodefensa groups before evolving into rival criminal groups themselves.
Video of Dead Los Tlacos
A video was also released to show those ‘Los Tlacos’ members killed. At least 6 dead bodies were displayed, including a decapitated head on top of a shot-up truck setup for cartel gunmen. The bodies are all men, and dressed in fatigue-type outfits in line with gunmen, not civilians. The men recording, supposedly La Familia Michoacana members curse the dead rivals and call out “Mándenme Mas de Estos!”, or “Send me more of these!”
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