Mexico military takes control of key seaport
Iran Press TV
Tue Nov 5, 2013 3:26PM GMT
Mexico has imposed military control over one of the country's key seaports ahead of a plan to reign in drug-cartel activity in the western state of Michoacan, officials say.
Mexican soldiers have taken responsibility for policing duties in the city of Lazaro Cardenas and in adjacent Pacific seaport in the southern part of the Mexican state of Michoacan, federal security spokesman Eduardo Sanchez said Monday.
Soldiers have replaced all 113 police officers in the city, while they undergo drug testing and police training, the official said.
"We have received anonymous tips that lead us to believe there has been corruption and collusion from people at the port," Sanchez added.
In recent years, drug cartels and police officials operating in the state have committed numerous massacres, gunfights and kidnappings as they seek to control smuggling routes into the United States.
This comes as another setback to President Enrique Nieto after pledging to get rid of gang violence that has claimed about 80,000 lives in Mexico since the start of 2007.
Official data show that every month since Nieto took office in December last year, an additional 1,000 people die in violence linked to drug cartels and the Mexican army is still fighting gangs across large parts of the country.
Earlier this year, Nieto admitted that organized criminal gangs have gained the upper hand in some parts of the country, including the states of Michoacan, Mexico and Guerrero, despite increased military troops in those areas.
GMA/PR
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