Cirilo Vázquez Lagunes (died November 19, 2006), nicknamed "

Cacique A ''cacique'' (Latin American ; ; feminine form: ''cacica'') was a tribal chieftain of the Taíno people, the indigenous inhabitants at European contact of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles. The term is a Spa ...

of the South," ("cacique del sur" in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

) was a Mexican cattle rancher and businessman who had political power in areas in the state of

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

.Althaus, Dudley.
WHO REALLY RUNS MEXICO?
''

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With it ...

''. Sunday June 11, 2006. A29. Retrieved on June 16, 2010. Vázquez died at the hands of assassins at the age of 51. Dudley Althaus of the ''

'' said that Cirilo Vázquez was "arguably the most powerful political figure in the southern coastal lowlands of Veracruz state." Vázquez, a ''

cacique A ''cacique'' (Latin American ; ; feminine form: ''cacica'') was a tribal chieftain of the Taíno people, the indigenous inhabitants at European contact of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles. The term is a Spa ...

'' (a local

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

), loaned money and built infrastructure for the areas he lived in. Vázquez never ran for office and was never elected to any government position.Althaus, Dudley.
Slaying of Mexican boss ends era of power
" ''

''. Thursday November 23, 2006. Alternate link:
`Baron' ran town but died in streets - Mexican boss man's gang-style slaying ends an era of power and influence
"
Alternate link
A1. Retrieved on June 26, 2010.

NewsBank NewsBank is a news database resource that provides archives of media publications as reference materials to libraries. History John Naisbitt, the author of the book ''Megatrends'', founded NewsBank.Andrews 1998, p. 17. The company was launched i ...

Record Number: 4235283, Available from the

Houston Public Library Houston Public Library is the public library system serving Houston, Texas, United States. History Houston Lyceum and the Carnegie Library The Houston Public Library system traces its founding to the creation of the second Houston Lyceum in 18 ...

website with a library card. "Vazquez himself held no official title. But people wanting something done with public money turned to him rather than town officials." Vázquez had a wife, Deisi Valencia, who served as the mayor of

San Juan Evangelista San Juan Evangelista is a municipality located in the plains of the Sotavento zone in the central zone of the State of Veracruz, about 260 km from state capital Xalapa. It has a surface of 968.94 km2. It is located at . Geographic limits The ...

. Vázquez had two daughters, including Fabiola Vázquez Saut, the former mayor of

Acayucan Acayucan is a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz, located in the state's southeast, in the Olmeca region. It serves as the municipal seat for the Acayucan Municipality. At the 2005 INEGI Census, Acayucan reported a population of 49,945. Ref ...

, and

Regina Vázquez Saut Regina Vázquez Saut (born 11 September 1981) is a Mexican politician affiliated with the PRI. As of 2013 she served as Deputy of both the LIX and LXII Legislatures of the Mexican Congress representing Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Ver ...

, a former federal congressperson. Vázquez also had an older brother, Ponciano Vázquez Lagunes; in June 2006, several kidnappers kidnapped Ponciano, demanded the equivalent of two million

U.S. dollars The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

in return for Ponciano's release, and killed Ponciano. Despite the act, Vázquez refused to take extra security measures. Due to a reputation for violence and because of his ambition and shrewd nature, he became well known in the early 1980s. In the 1980s, Vázquez engineered elections of Fabiola and his wife to their respective mayoral positions; he also had Regina elected to the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

. Authorities imprisoned Vázquez on three occasions for weapons possession, drug trafficking, and murder. Authorities never convicted Vázquez. Friends and family members of Vázquez said that the imprisonments were motivated by politics. As of 2006 some residents of the Veracruz area sing at least one half-dozen '' corridos'' (

folk ballad Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be c ...

s) about Vázquez. One of the corridos depicts a shootout with federal police in the 1980s that left Vázquez's four companions dead and Vázquez in prison. On November 19, 2006,Staff.
News in 90 seconds
" ''

''. Thursday November 23, 2006. A2. Retrieved on June 16, 2010. several assassins ambushed Vázquez as he returned from a semi-pro

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

game in which his team had defeated a regional rival with a 10–1 win. The men shot Vázquez at least twelve times, including three times in the head. Three municipal police officers, who served as Vázquez's bodyguards, and the father of Vázquez's common law wife also died.

References

External links

*
Archive
. '' Diario Olmeca''. Tuesday November 21, 2006. * Vázquez Chagoya, César Augusto.
Archivo
. '' Diario Veracruz''. Domingo 22 de enero 2006. * Reyes, Rudolfo.
Asesinan en Veracruz a Cirilo Vázquez, el Cacique del Sur, y a otras cuatro personas
"

. ''

La Crónica de Hoy ''La Crónica de Hoy'' is a Mexican newspaper published in Mexico City. The newspaper was launched in 1996 by its founder, Pablo Hiriart. ''La Crónica de Hoy'' has been directed by journalist Guillermo Ortega Ruiz since 2007. See also * List of ...

''.
Cirilo Vázquez Lagunes discute con Hernán Bermúdez Requena
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vazquez, Cirilo People from Veracruz Mexican murder victims People murdered in Mexico 2006 deaths Year of birth missing