Chihuahua Reporter Executed Only Weeks After Launching New Website

Chivis Martinez Borderland Beat

 

On December of 2012, the reporter and general director of the digital newspaper  www.ojinaganoticias.com.mx published he felt happy and very optimistic about 2013.

 

“Well people, I feel happy and cheerful because I think that this year comes strong in my goals that I’ve been wanting to achieve and with all the effort in the world, I have achieved them, thanks to all the people that read the digital newspaper”.  Jaime Gonzales Dominguez

So wrote Jaime, who officially launched the newest Ojinafa news website on February 18th.

Two weeks later, on  March 3rd, Jaime Gonzalez Dominguez, 38, became the first journalist killed during the presidency of Enrique Peña Nieto.  Jaime was executed around  6:30 pm at the intersection of Trasviña and Retes Street, downtown of Ojinaga, Chihuahua. Previously the site was named ojinaganews.com.mx

The journalist was accompanied by a woman, who wasn’t injured and according to witnesses the sicarios took the reporters camera with them when they left.

Carlos Gonzalez, spokesman of the General Prosecutor of the State (FGE), reported investigators discovered at the scene 17 shell casings of caliber 5.77 x 38 known as “cop killers”,  for the ability to penetrate bullet proof vest protectors.

Jaime Guadalupe had two Facebook accounts, in one he used his name and the account was used to give information of the community and merchants. The other account was OjinagaNews Jaime, and on that account, he announced the launching of the printed version of the newspaper with general news “Ojinaganews.com.mx

Jaime wrote this entry about his new venture; 

 “With the good news that if it is God’s design,  next week comes out the first edition of the printed newspaper of ojinaganews, with God’s will and thanks to you all that are making it possible because you are the ones that give me the energy to KEEP GOING forward with the information and to have you guys informed of the events of Ojinaga, its beautiful region Presidio and Midland,  ‘THANK YOU A LOT’ FOR YOUR SUPPORT, WHICH I WOULD HOPE THE SAME FOR THE PRINTED NEWSPAPER, TO OFFER YOU THE BEST OF THE INFORMATION AND OF ME”, he added.

Identifying the motive behind the execution is cloudy.  Especially since the reporting by Jaime was seemingly that of commerce and city events.  However one can reach a logical conclusion that perhaps Jaime was providing information to a party that his executioners wanted stopped.  The fact that the sicarios absconded with the camera strongly supports such a theory.   

 

The Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights condemned the crime.

"The Rapporteur expresses its concern and calls Mexican authorities to act with expediency to identify the motives behind the crime and use all the judicial instruments at its disposal to identify and sanction the material and intellectual authors," the Rapporteur said in a press release.

The Knights Center states; Mexico continues to be among the most dangerous countries in the continent for journalists. According to a recent interactive map from the organization Article 19, Chihuahua has been one of the most violent states for journalists in the last twelve years

Below the website announces that this will most likely be the last issue, click image to enlarge.

 

Descanse en Paz Jaime Guadalupe González Domínguez