Just South of the border there is an ongoing struggle between the people of Mexico, government corruption, and organized crime. Nestora Salgado, mother, wife, and citizen of both the United States and Mexico, works as a coordinator of the community police in the city of Olinala Mexico and is a longtime activist for woman’s and indigenous people’s rights. Salgado has tried to show the people of Mexico just how corrupt the government is by attempting to bring to light those who are supporting organized crime.
On August 21, 2013, Salgado was arrested in Mexico and was officially charged with aggravated kidnapping of local official, Armando Patron. According to her daughter she was arrested for “her public denouncements of local and state officials who are taking money from organized crime.” The charges are based on the fact that, under her influence, the community police of Olinala had arrested Armando Patron for tampering with evidence of a double homicide and stealing property from the victims. They have not released him.
According to Salgado’s family, who were unaware of her location after her arrest, the aggravated kidnapping charges are completely false. Salgado was taken without an arrest warrant and is currently being held without access to her lawyers, no evidence against her has been presented at this time. Salgado’s family is also doing what they can to raise awareness of her cause and advocate her release.
Source:
Rachael Stoeve, “Mexico Imprisons US Citizen Who Fought Corruption,” Truth-Out, September 19, 2013, http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/18916-mexico-imprisons-us-citizen-who-fought-corruptionhttp://guerrero.gob.mx/2013/08/dicta-juez-formal-prision-a-nestora-salgado-garcia-por-secuestro-pgje/
Student Researchers: Devon Freeman, Kayla Heefner, & Cameron Terry (Santa Rosa Junior College)
Faculty Evaluator: Susan Rahman, (Santa Rosa Junior College)