On the morning of Saturday, January 2, less than 24 hours after she was sworn in as the new mayor of Temixco, Morelos, Gisela Mota Ocampo, 33, was shot to death in her home, allegedly by a commando of paid assassins.
The masked gunmen stormed Mota’s house, dragged her from her bed and killed her in the living room in front of her parents.
According to reports, two of the suspected killers were chased by police and died in a gunfight. Three others — including a minor, a 32-year-old woman, and an 18-year-old man — were captured alive.
Mota Ocampo is the 41st Mexican mayor to be killed during the three-year administration of President Enrique Peña Nieto. The slaying in the town located 50 kilometers south of Mexico City drew condemnation from around the world, and the United Nations.
During her campaign, Mota – of the left-of-center Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) – had vowed not to make any deals with local gangs operating in the region and said she would confront organized crime “head on.”
Although Temixco has a high crime rate, Mota refused to use bodyguards. Reports also suggest she was planning to support Morelos Governor Graco Ramirez’s plan to replace some municipal police forces in the state with a single, centralized force. According to Ramirez, the three people arrested Monday in connection with the crime are linked to Los Rojos criminal gang, which is waging a turf battle with Los Guerreros Unidos to control municipal police forces in the state. He says his plan to disband corrupt municipal forces would seriously limit the influence of both organizations.
Los Guerreros Unidos are linked with the probable massacre of 43 students in Iguala, Guerrero in September 2014.
Unconfirmed reports suggest the assassins were paid 30,000 pesos to carry out the hit on Mota Ocampo.