Law Enforcement
Two priests murdered inside Mexican church in Chihuahua
The murders were allegedly caused when the priests tried to defend a man who was being pursued by armed men and was seeking refuge
June 21, 2022 12:57pm
Updated: June 21, 2022 3:04pm
Two Jesuit priests and a civilian were murdered on Monday afternoon inside the church of the community of Cerocahui, in the municipality of Urique of Sierra Taruhamara, reported the government of the Mexican state of Chihuahua.
The bodies of priests Javier Campos Morales and Joaquín César Mora Salazar were taken from the church by armed men, the Society of Jesus added in a statement issued on Tuesday.
The priests were murdered for allegedly trying to defend a man being chased by armed men and seeking refuge inside the church, reported LatinUs.
Con profundo dolor, denunciamos el homicidio de nuestros hermanos Javier Campos Morales,SJ, y Joaquín César Mora Salazar,SJ,ocurrido ayer en el templo de Cerocahui, #Chihuahua.
— Jesuitas México (@Jesuitas_Mexico) June 21, 2022
Condenamos estos hechos violentos, exigimos justicia.
➡️ https://t.co/UGGXCsatPI#JesuitasMéxico pic.twitter.com/wr4ULX3HXV
"Facts like these are not isolated. Like many other regions of the country, the Sierra Tarahumara faces violence and neglect that have not been reversed. Every day men and women are arbitrarily deprived of their lives, as our brothers were murdered today," the Jesuits said in the statement.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador explained on Tuesday that all we currently know is that the subjects entered the church and killed one person. Then, the priests came out and "apparently" were also killed.
"We are already addressing this issue. We know that Urique is an area with organized crime presence, but we are already working on it," he said at a press conference.
Chihuahua authorities described the murders as "circumstantial deaths." However, they announced that a special 911 line has been activated for people who have relatives in the tourist town and need information.
According to figures from the Executive Secretariat of the National Public Security System (SESNSP) cited by Animal Político, from January to May of this year, 904 investigation files were registered in Chihuahua for homicide.
