Hurricane Grace Causes Blackouts / Homicide Rate Declines

Hurricane Grace causes blackouts in Yucatan Peninsula. Head of the National Coordination of Civil Protection Laura Velázquez said 697,000 electricity users were affected after Hurricane Grace struck Campeche, Yucatan and Quintana Roo on Thursday. However, she said that CFE is already restoring services. “CFE has restored 63 percent of the affected services and (by the end of) the day, all services will be restored in Campeche, Quintana Roo and Yucatan.”

Hurricane Grace struck roughly east of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, causing heavy rain and winds that cut off electricity to most users on the peninsula. The hurricane is expected to move across the southwestern Gulf of Mexico before hitting the coast later in the day.

Fuel theft. Minister of National Defense (SEDENA) Luis Cresencio Sandoval highlighted that 699,603 liters of stolen fuel have been recovered. In addition, more than 3,000 military personnel have been deployed to guard six priority pipelines. "The entities that have the highest number of clandestine intakes are the State of Mexico, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Michoacan and Tamaulipas, for which we are reinforcing our efforts in those states."

In 1Q21, the last period with official information available, the number of clandestine intakes from gas pipelines was 692, which represents an increase of 44.7 percent compared to 1Q20, when there were 478. Furthermore, PEMEX reported that clandestine intakes in 1H21 generated an economic loss of US$29.44 million, 134.37 percent more than in 1H20, when it reported a loss of US$12.56 million.

Homicides down but not feminicides. Minister of Security and Citizen Protection (SSPC) Rosa Icela Rodríguez reported that intentional homicides decreased 3.86 percent in 1H21 compared to 1H20, when there were 16,937 homicides. However, in 1H21 there were 580 feminicides, representing an increase of 3.3 percent compared to 1H20, when there were 492. “In homicide cases, 50.2 percent of the victims were from Guanajuato, Baja California, Jalisco, the State of Mexico, Michoacan and Chihuahua. As a result, we are going to strengthen our operational intelligence, the territorialization of the security forces, as well as the prosecution to reduce impunity."

In 2020, Mexico had a homicide rate of 29 murders per 100,000 inhabitants, which is the same rate as 2018, when it reached an all-time high. According to INEGI, there were 36,579 intentional homicides in 2020, only 82 fewer homicides than in 2019. In terms of crimes against women, there were 1,391 female victims of intentional homicide and 508 victims of femicide, which means an average of 10.5 women were murdered per day in 1H21.

AMLO: Ravelo's murder was a hate crime. President López Obrador said that the murder of José Eduardo Ravelo Echeverría was a hate crime and, therefore, the case is being addressed by his security cabinet to hold the perpetrators accountable. "This is a hate crime and it will not be allowed. It is not just an attitude of the police who carry out these actions but those who tolerate these types of atrocities."

Ravelo, a 23-year-old man, was allegedly murdered and sexually abused by elements of the Municipal Police in Merida, Yucatan, on July 21, 2021. The Attorney General's Office announced that it is opening an investigation into the case.