Activist Who Documented Murders In Mexico’s Deadliest City Shot Dead

Adolfo Enríquez — an anti-crime activist, who documented murders in one of Mexico’s deadliest cities — was shot dead on Tuesday night in northern Mexico.

The tragic incident came four days after he accused a company’s lawyer of threatening and intimidating him. More than 30 bullet casings were found at the crime scene. The matter is currently under investigation.

What happened to Adolfo Enríquez?

Adolfo Enríquez used to document murders in one of Mexico’s deadliest cities. He was also killed in Mexico’s deadliest cities. 

The city of León has the third-highest number of homicides in Mexico, behind Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez. Adolfo Enríquez was killed in León, a city in the central Mexican state of Guanajuato. 

For years, he documented each murder in León. Just hours before his death, he documented “murder No 55 in León in November.” However, he himself became the 56th murder victim on Tuesday. 

Before his death, he wrote on Facebook, “In the colony Las Margaritas, intentional homicide number 55 is what is going on in November in León.”

He was shot dead after his dinner at a taco restaurant in central León. His friend was also injured. After killing the activist, the attacker fled on a motorcycle. 

According to knowledgeable sources and media reports, he was killed days after alleging online that a dental company’s lawyer threatened him for reporting the “arbitrary and violent way” the clinic “charges for services that were never performed.”

Mexican journalist and acquaintance Coco Bernal wrote on social media platform X, previously Twitter, “His murder leaves us with a profound reading about the difficult times to exercise denunciation and freedom of expression.”

Homicide in León

So far in November, 56 murders have taken place in León. In October, 64 murders took place in León. Adolfo Enríquez used to post videos of such crimes. He also posted videos of crimes such as robberies and muggings. 

When he posted a security camera video of the stabbing death of a woman in León in August, he gained attention from the media and people. 

The city is known for battles between the Jalisco drug cartel and local gangs backed by the Sinaloa cartel. Crimes against activists in the city is also common. 

In 2021, Mexico was the deadliest place in the world for environmental and land defense activists.