(IPYS/IFEX) – On 17 January 2004, journalist Irene Medrano Villanueva, of “El Sol de Sinaloa” newspaper, announced that she has been receiving death threats via anonymous telephone calls. Medrano began receiving the calls on 6 January, after she published articles about a prostitution network in which Sinaloa state officials are allegedly involved. Sinaloa state is […]
(IPYS/IFEX) – On 17 January 2004, journalist Irene Medrano Villanueva, of “El Sol de Sinaloa” newspaper, announced that she has been receiving death threats via anonymous telephone calls.
Medrano began receiving the calls on 6 January, after she published articles about a prostitution network in which Sinaloa state officials are allegedly involved. Sinaloa state is located in the northwestern part of the country.
During a press conference, Medrano said that, according to official investigations, the calls were made from the Mayor’s Office in Culiacán, Sinaloa’s capital. A message that included the word “death” first appeared on one of her car’s windows. Subsequently, one of the car’s windows was broken and her brakes were tampered with.
After the journalist filed a complaint, personnel from the State Attorney General’s Office inspected her telephone and informed her that the calls were coming from the Mayor’s Office. Medrano said she will hold Mayor Jesús Enrique Hernández Chávez responsible for anything that may happen to her.
On 19 January, however, the mayor made a statement before the Public Prosecutor’s Office official who is in charge of the case. After submitting the written statement, he criticised the judicial authorities for providing information to a number of media outlets regarding the investigation that resulted in his office’s telephone line being linked to Medrano’s case.
According to local journalists, several months ago Medrano publicly stated that she had been threatened by a local member of parliament. She did not, however, file a complaint about the threat with the authorities.
