One of the bodies was identified as Ruben Espinosa, a photojournalist for Mexico’s investigative reporting magazine “Proceso“.
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Ruben Espinosa sustained severe injuries to his face before he was killed, said Dario Ramirez, director of the Article 19 group. His family had lost contact with him on Friday and by Saturday the free speech advocacy group Article 19 had called on Mexican authorities to activate the protocols for locating a missing journalist.
Veracruz has been a risky state for reporters. Espinosa was found slain, along with four other people early Saturday in an apartment in Mexico City, according to the magazine. This has been especially true during the last five years, as the Committee to Protect Journalists has reported 11 deaths in the state from 2010 to this day, all under the government of Javier Duarte. Three of them had lived in the apartment and the fourth was a domestic employee, the city prosecutor’s office said. Two others, including Espinosa, were Veracruz journalists found dead outside of the state.
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Mexico City has witnessed fewer cases of violence linked to the drug trade, in comparison with many other parts of the country. He was from the Mexican state Veracruz, but had fled to Mexico City because he was being harassed in his home state.
