Attorney General updates lawmakers on crime

Baja California Attorney General Perla Ibarra told members of the state Assembly Tuesday that the agency is more modern and strong thanks to the strengthening of infrastructure, increase of equipment and service improvement.

Speaking before the Assembly’s Commission on Justice, Ibarra said judges had convicted and sentenced 1,890 suspects, achieving a conviction rate of 99 percent.

She also said more than 11,000 cases have been solved through the Alternative Justice System.

According to the official, the agency has released 4,600 restraining orders due to domestic violence. However, she admitted the state must work on psychotherapy for abusers.

The attorney general said guns are now not only coming from the United States, but from southern Mexico as well.

More suspects are getting indicted and kept behind bars than in past years, Ibarra added.

The attorney general said kidnapping cases have seen a reduction of 89 percent over the past decade, with 31 suspects apprehended and 11 gangs dismantled. She said 91 percent of victims were rescued.

In her report the attorney general said four out of every five homicides are committed in Tijuana, the largest city in the state.

Mexicali has reported in the last year a 30 percent reduction in the number of vehicle theft cases, with 5,452 automobiles recovered and 21 criminal groups dismantled.