Shooting Between Drug Traffickers And Self-defense Forces Traps Chiapas Teachers.

Mica for cartelinsider.com

During the early hours of this Friday, at least 10 bilingual teachers from the municipality of Pantelhó, Chiapas, were trapped in their classrooms when an intense shootout broke out between members of organized crime and a group of self-defense forces.

Through social media, teachers from the D1-387 delegation requested help because as soon as they heard the first gunshots, they were already in the classrooms and had to stay there for over two hours while the shootout lasted. It was not until the local residents helped them to get out and stay safe.

Reports from residents and local authorities confirmed that the confrontation began minutes after 7:00 in the morning and was carried out by members of “Los Herrera” against members of the self-defense group known as “El Machete”.

The newspaper La Jornada reported the statement of a resident who claimed to have witnessed a “Los Herrera” commando attack against the community of San Clemente and other nearby areas.

Unofficially, the death of two people and two others injured as a result of gunfire was reported; meanwhile, the residents of Pantelhó stated that their attackers came from the communities of Fracción Tzanembolom and Chenalhó.

In July 2021, the self-defense group “El Machete” formed the “Civil Army of the Indigenous People” to expel Austreberto Herrera’s men from Pantelhó, who, despite being detained, their sons continued -they claim- their criminal legacy to subjugate the inhabitants of the Chiapas municipality.

After the arrest of their father, his children Dayli de los Santos (already arrested) and Rubén Estanislao Herrera Gutiérrez, and their uncle José Herrera Abarca, took control of the criminal organization that reached its peak during the state government of Pablo Salazar Mendiguchía (2000-2006). At that time, the leader of “Los Herrera” was appointed municipal judge.

“The Herreras” managed to impose themselves on the municipal governments of Pantelhó -according to information from journalist Héctor Estrada- with the support of the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD); but everything changed with the arrival of Manuel Velasco to power in 2012, the capture of Austreberto and the uprising of “El Machete” army.

According to their own statements, “El Machete” was born to “expel and clean up” Pantelhó from criminal groups and its own mayor, Delia Janeth Velasco Flores, accused of links with organized crime.

From that moment on, “El Machete” took control of the municipality through a Municipal Council, but “Los Herrera” have been pressuring to regain control -according to several local sources- which has sparked a series of confrontations and a worsening of violence in the municipality.

Other versions suggest that “El Machete” is a self-defense group infiltrated and funded by a rival organized crime group to “Los Herrera”, and that they are interested in driving them out of the region to take control of the territory in the municipality north of San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas.

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Mica

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