Radio presenter’s murder in Acapulco

Reporters Without Borders is shocked by the murder of journalist Juan Daniel Martínez Gil, whose half-buried body was found on 28 July near the port city of Acapulco (in the southwestern state of Guerrero). The Acapulco-based radio presenter had been badly beaten, a cloth was stuffed in his mouth and his head was wrapped in masking tape. “We offer our condolences to Martínez’s family and colleagues and we urge the local and federal authorities to assign enough personnel to the case so that they can quickly identify those responsible for the murder and their motives, which are still unknown,” Reporters Without Borders said. “During a visit to Mexico from 4 to 12 July, we went to Acapulco and talked to local journalists about the high level of violent crime to which they are exposed in this region,” the press freedom organisation added. The host of the Radiorama FM radio programmes “W Guerrero” and “Guerrero Vivo”, the 48-year old Martínez died as a result of asphyxia on the night of 27 July, the autopsy report said. His relatives and friends are stunned by his death. “We do not know the motive,” Radiorama colleague Arturo Pérez Calzada said. “As far we know, he had not received any threats. We do not cover stories involving drug trafficking. This is a strange case.” Local investigators have not yet developed any hypotheses. Martínez is the second Radiorama journalist to be murdered in the past two and a half years. Amado Ramírez Dillanes was gunned down as he left the radio station on 6 April 2007. With four journalists murdered since the start of the year, crimes of violence against the media are continuing to mount in Mexico. Martínez’s death brings the total number of journalists murdered in Mexico since 2000 to 50. (Photo: website Radiorama Guerrero)