Mayor Of Chilpancingo, Who Met With Leader Of "Los Ardillos", Seeks To Become Senator For Morena

"Sol Prendido" for Borderland Beat

Norma Otilia Hernández Martínez, mayor of Chilpancingo, announced on December 26, 2023, that she requested a leave of absence from the local Congress for a period of 38 days to participate in the internal process of the Morena political party, in order to obtain a pre-candidacy for the Senate.

This despite the meeting she held with the capo Celso Ortega Jimenez, alias "El Ardillo Mayor", one of the brothers who leads the criminal group Los Ardillos, relatives of local congressman Bernardo Ortega Jimenez, of the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD).

During a press conference, the mayor said that she sent her license request a week before and in case the local deputies approve it, the license would begin on January 2, 2024 and would end on February 10 of the same year.

"Last week I asked for leave [to the local Congress] for the internal process, let's say of Morena, which is in about a month or less, but for that this Government is not going to stop working with the plan we have," said Hernández Martínez, who also indicated that as of January 2, 2024, would be in charge of office, Xóchitl Herrera Heredia, head of the General Secretariat of the City Hall.

On July 7, 2023, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador informed that the meeting that Norma Otilia Hernández Martínez, municipal president of Chilpancingo, Guerrero, held with the capo Celso Ortega Jiménez, alias "El Ardillo Mayor", one of the brothers who leads the criminal group Los Ardillos, relatives of local deputy Bernardo Ortega Jiménez, of the PRD, would be investigated.

It was founded in 2000, after the split of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel, and is currently dedicated to drug trafficking, extortion, kidnapping and homicide, mainly in the Central and La Montaña regions of Guerrero.

Los Ardillos disputed territory with Los Rojos, also a splinter group of the Beltran Leyva Cartel. The clashes between the two criminal groups spread to the municipalities of Chilpancingo, Eduardo Neri, Tixtla and Chilapa.

In the recording, Hernandez Martinez can be seen sitting next to her husband, Diego Omar Benigno Gonzalez. While "El Ardillo Mayor" can be seen wearing a black cap and shirt, carrying a holstered pistol. The video also shows the moment in which the mayoress addresses the capo in a very colloquial language about his age.

"Hello, how are you, Norma Otilia. Come in," Ortega Jimenez is heard saying in the video. "I pictured you as being older," the mayoress indicates to him. "Yes, we’re older," the capo replied. Yes, you’re already in the latter stages of life huh," jokes the municipal president. "Yes," insists the leader of Los Ardillos. "Tell me, how can I help, I'm not interested in what, what you do for a living," Hernandez Martinez emphasized. Then the audio recording ends.

Mayor Norma Otilia Hernández Martínez

Chilpancingo, Guerrero

Zeta Tijuana  Noti Exprés