Miguel Ángel Anaya Castillo, the founder and editor of Pánuco Online, a news website based on Facebook, was last seen on April 13 in his hometown of Pánuco, in the eastern Mexican state of Veracruz, but was not reported missing until April 18.
The disappearance was confirmed on April 19 by the Veracruz State Commission for Attention to and Protection of Journalists (CEAPP), an autonomous agency of the state government.
Pánuco Online has more than 25,000 followers and covers a wide range of topics, including local politics, crime, and violence in the region.
On February 28, Anaya received threats from unknown individuals at his residence, according to a video published on the Facebook page, which CPJ reviewed. According to the video, three men visited his residence in Pánuco saying they had “a message from the mayor,” apparently referring to Pánuco Mayor Óscar Guzmán. Anaya then called the police, and the men, who have not been identified, left the scene when a patrol car approached the residence.
Anaya commented in the video that the threat may have been related to his coverage of a protest two days prior of inhabitants of Pánuco demanding the closure of a local garbage dump.
CPJ was unable to find contact information for Anaya’s family. Several calls to the Pánuco mayor’s office and local police department went unanswered.