Another mayor is killed in Mexico, this time in Michoacan

MEXICO CITY (AP) — A Mexican mayor and her husband were killed Tuesday in the western state of Michoacan, less than 48 hours after a mayor in the southern state of Oaxaca was killed.

Local politicians are frequently victims of political and organized crime violence.

The Michoacan State Prosecutor’s Office confirmed on social media that Tepalcatepec Mayor Martha Laura Mendoza had been killed. Prosecutors offered no additional details.

Tepalcatepec is near the border with Jalisco state and is a persistent hotspot for drug cartel violence in Mexico. A number of organized crime groups operate in the area.

Director of the state Institutional Revolutionary Party, Guillermo Valencia, said Mendoza was killed leaving her home.

“We continue demanding justice,” Valencia said on social media, noting that six Michoacan mayors have been killed under the current Mexican administration that took office in October. Another Michoacan mayor, Tacambaro’s Salvador Bastidas, was killed earlier this month.

The latest killing came two days after Lilia García Soto, mayor of San Mateo Piñas, was killed in Oaxaca.