Isaac Trejo Gracián, a key Chapala City Hall official, has revealed that he was the target of a recent telephone extortion scam.
He is the incumbent Síndico, an elective post to act as the government’s legal counsel.
On Tuesday, February 9, Trejo released a five-minute video message giving details of his experience in a series of phone calls from purported members of an organized crime group demanding protection money to avoid veiled threatens of physical harm.
Occupied in his duties, he did not answer the first call but picked up a message from a person identifying himself as a government agency official. His return call was answered by someone claiming to be an operative of the cartel in control of this area, who implied his life was in danger unless he agreed to a hefty pay-off.
Trejo issued the statement as a warning to others who may be sucked in by similar extortion calls. “Do not give out any personal information. Make a note of the number of the incoming call, hang up, and report it to the 089 hotline so that law enforcement may be able to trace the source,” he advised.