Miguel Angel Villagómez Valle (ca. 1979 – 10 October 2008) was a Mexican journalist, editor and publisher who founded and operated the newspaper ''La Noticia de Michoacán'' in 2004 until his murder in

La Unión, Guerrero La Unión is a city and seat of the municipality of La Unión de Isidoro Montes de Oca, in the Mexican state of Guerrero. In 2005 its population was 3,079.Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía The National Institute of Statistics ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Personal

Miguel Angel Villagómez Valle was a native of the Mexican State of

Guerrero Guerrero, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guerrero, is one of the 32 states that compose the administrative divisions of Mexico, 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guerrero, 85 municipalities. The stat ...

. He moved to the coastal city

Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán Lázaro Cárdenas () is a port city in Michoacán bordered to the east by Guerrero. Lázaro Cárdenas is located in the southern part of the Mexican state of Michoacán, being the southernmost municipality in Michoacán. It was formerly known as ...

in 1998. At the time of his death he lived in the city of

Zihuatanejo Zihuatanejo (), and/or Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, is the fourth largest city in the Mexican state of Guerrero. It was known by 18th-century English mariners as Chequetan and/or Seguataneo. Politically the city belongs to the municipalities of Mexico, m ...

with wife, Irania Iveth Leyva Faustino and their three children. His funeral mass was held at the Church of St. Joseph the Worker followed by a funeral procession that went through the offices of ''La Noticia de Michoacán''.

Career

Miguel Angel Villagómez Valle worked as a journalist in Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán since 1998. He founded and published his own newspaper, ''La Noticia de Michoacán'', in 2004. The news outlet started out with only simple machines and three computers. The ''La Noticia de Michoacán,'' which operates as a small regional tabloid, often has stories on organized crime, corruption and drug-trafficking. Villagómez worked as the editor and publisher of ''La Noticia de Michoacán'' He headed the newspaper until his death at which time he was succeeded by his friend Francisco Rivera Cruz.''La Noticia de Michoacán'' has the largest circulation in the west port with 2,500 copies sold daily. The tabloid puts out a new issue everyday but Saturday.

Death

In the weeks leading up to his death, Miguel Angel Villagómez Valle received a threatening call from a man who claimed to be a part of the

Los Zetas Los Zetas (, Spanish for "The Zs") is a Mexican criminal syndicate and designated terrorist organization, known as one of the most dangerous of Mexico's drug cartels. They are known for engaging in brutally violent " shock and awe" tactics suc ...

, a militant group of former soldiers who works for the cartel. He warned his family of the threats and asked them to be alert. On the night of October 9, 2008, Miguel Angel Villagómez Valle was kidnapped on his way home from work after he took two colleagues home. The state attorney said that minutes later, he was intercepted by at least two cars with armed individuals who abducted him. On the following day, police found his body at around 10 a.m. at the side of the road near a dump about a kilometer away from the exit to the town of La Unión. His body was covered in bruises and had six gunshot wounds to the back and one to the head. His body also had the

coup de grâce A coup de grâce (; ) is an act of mercy killing in which a person or animal is struck with a melee weapon or shot with a projectile to end their suffering from mortal wounds with or without their consent. Its meaning has extended to refer to ...

. His body was taken to

where the investigation continued. His murder may have been linked to his work. He was the seventh journalist killed in 2008. The motive was unknown at the time of the murder.

Context

Michoacán Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo, is one of the 31 states which, together with Mexico City, compose the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The stat ...

is one of the most violent states in Mexico with confrontation between the cartels, the

and La Familia. It is not uncommon for journalists to disappear, be abducted or murdered. Miguel Angel Villagómez Valle was the seventh journalist killed in Mexico in 2008. In many of these cases there is a lack of searching to find the killers.

Reactions

The murder of Miguel Angel Villagómez Valle was condemned by the IAPA (Inter American Press Association) on 10 October 2008. The organization urged authorities to find who planned and carried out the crime. Soon after his death Mexico's Human Rights Commission appealed for the murders of journalists to be thoroughly investigated and called for an end to the impunity. His name was added to the

Newseum The Newseum (April 18, 1997–March 3, 2002 and April 11, 2008–December 31, 2019) was an American museum located first in Rosslyn, Virginia, and later at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, in Washington, D.C., dedicated to news and journalism that ...

modern wall in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

References