10 April 2010
Enrique Villicana Palomares
Knife attack
The body of a kidnapped Mexican journalist has been found with his throat slit, federal prosecutors said Sunday.
The family of Enrique Villicana Palomares, a columnist for the daily newspaper The Voice of Michoacan in central Mexico, reported him missing last week after he didn't make it to a university where he taught writing. Federal prosecutors said in a written statement that his body was found Saturday in the state capital, Morelia, after someone demanded a ransom. The statement did not say whether a ransom was paid, and prosecutors were not available.
Investigators have not determined if Palomares was targeted because of his work as a journalist. His family told the press advocacy organization Reporters Without Borders that he was a member of the indigenous Purepecha group, and that he had written columns about attacks by armed groups on members on his community.His employers told Reporters Without Borders that the Michoacán state justice department failed to take any action after being notified two weeks ago that threats had been made against him.
