Federal security denies operation to hide Rocha Moya

The Attorney General’s Office of the State of Morelos obtained preventive detention for Víctor Rodríguez Padilla, former director of Pemex. The risk it represents for his wife, the Cuban engineer María Felicia Jiménez Lavie, was demonstrated. The attack occurred last March, at a weekend house in Club Country, municipality of Emiliano Zapata.

Details of the attack

The attack was recorded on video. In the images you can see a minor running out of the room while her father beats her mother with extreme violence. During the hearing, the defense requested house arrest, arguing that the former official is 69 years old and suffers from a malignant tumor in the prostate. However, Judge Consuelo Adriana Carrera pointed out that the principle of exceptionality applies from the age of 70. Furthermore, Rodríguez Padilla does not have a home in Morelos and represents a risk to his wife and their daughter, according to the Public Ministry of the Women’s Justice Center.

The Prosecutor’s Office reported two violent episodes. The first occurred in June 2022, three years after the couple married in Coyoacán. On that occasion, Rodríguez stuck a pen in María Felicia’s left arm. She tried to abandon him, but he threatened to denounce her for child abduction and deport her to Cuba.

The second attack occurred in March of this year, in a house in the Paraíso Country Club subdivision. It all started when María Felicia received a phone call and confronted her husband about a romantic relationship with a secretary. The former official’s response was to physically attack her. In the video projected in the courtroom you can see how he hits her in the ribs, subdues her by the hands, pulls her hair and throws her to the ground repeatedly, all in front of her daughter.

The FGE Women’s Justice Center reported that it has two investigation files against Víctor Rodríguez Padilla.

A minor was attacked with a machete on Las Salinas beach, in the municipality of Higueras de Zaragoza, municipality of Ahome. Fishermen who were in the area intervened to stop the attack and transferred the injured man to the Gynecological-Pediatric Hospital No. 2 of the IMSS in Los Mochis, where he was admitted.

Attack details

Two young men on a motorcycle arrived with machetes and repeatedly attacked the minor, whose age was not specified. The intervention of the fishermen prevented the injuries from becoming more serious. Investigative elements went to the hospital to collect testimonies and data that would allow the aggressors to be identified.

The incident occurs five days after a fight with machetes during the Virgen del Refugio festivities, in the same municipality. On that occasion, several horse riders participated in the fight, some using whips. No injuries were reported, but the incident spread on social networks.

As a consequence of these acts, municipal authorities canceled the dance scheduled in honor of the Virgen del Refugio during the weekend. The participation of the so-called “macheteros” is being investigated, since the carrying of machetes outside of working hours in the countryside is prohibited.

Sheinbaum insists on violation of sovereignty

President Claudia Sheinbaum reiterated that the arrest of Ismael “Mayo” Zambada, leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, does not justify an alleged violation of Mexican sovereignty. In his morning conference, he pointed out that the heart of the matter is not the capture, but how it happened.

“The end does not justify the means. Of course, this leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, it’s good that he is detained. He had an arrest warrant here, but the issue is whether there was a violation of sovereignty in that arrest,” he declared.

Sheinbaum also referred to statements by former ambassador Ken Salazar, who stated that the aircraft used to transport Zambada to the United States did not belong to the US government. However, the president pointed out contradictions.

“What it does not explain is how the FBI itself presents the plane at a fair as if it had been an FBI operation. That is the contradiction,” he said.

The president indicated that the government requested the Attorney General’s Office to incorporate these new elements into the investigation folder. He considers that there are omissions and lack of clarity in the information provided by the former diplomat.

Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco Álvarez compared the case to the kidnapping of doctor Humberto Álvarez Machain in 1990. At that time, Mexico defended national sovereignty beyond the crimes charged. Velasco accused those who today criticize the current government’s position of inconsistency.

Sheinbaum added that Zambada’s capture also sparked clashes between organized crime groups in Sinaloa. He insisted that the issue will continue on the bilateral agenda and that the FGR’s investigation must continue.