Protest vigil in Mexico after journalist kidnapped by gunmen is found dead

MEXICAN journalists have held a vigil and protest after one of their colleagues was murdered.

They demanded a transparent investigation into the killing of Roberto Figueroa and vented anger over the dangers that journalists face in Mexico.

Dozens joined in the demonstration over the murder of Mr Figueroa, who covered local politics and gained a social media following through satirical videos.

After disappearing on Friday morning, he was found dead inside a car in his hometown of Huitzilac in Morelos, a state south of Mexico City where drug-fuelled violence runs rampant.

He was the first journalist to be killed this year in Mexico.

The country has the highest number of missing journalists in the world, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Mexican prosecutors promised a serious investigation, and the Morelos state government has strongly condemned the killing.

But in a country where press activists say pervasive corruption and impunity have long endangered reporters, Mr Figueroa’s colleagues protested outside government offices in Morelos.

“No-one in Morelos is safe. Every day we count victims,” Jaime Luis Brito, a correspondent for left-wing magazine Proceso, wrote in a statement of protest.

Mexican media said Mr Figueroa was abducted by gunmen after taking his daughters to school. The kidnappers called his family demanding a ransom, but he was killed even though his wife delivered the payment, the reports said.

Police discovered Mr Figueroa’s body on Friday night.

Since 2000, 141 Mexican journalists and other media workers have been killed, at least 61 of them in apparent retaliation for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said.