New York, October 5, 2017–Armed men dressed as police officers this morning abducted local photographer Edgar Daniel Esqueda Castro from his home in the central Mexican state of San Luis Potosí, according to media reports. The state’s general prosecutor said in a statement that the prosecutor’s office is investigating, and denied that the state police were involved in the abduction.
“Authorities in the state of San Luis Potosí and Mexican federal authorities must find Edgar Daniel Esqueda Castro as swiftly as possible and bring him to safety,” said Alexandra Ellerbeck, CPJ’s program coordinator for North America. “Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists. If the Mexican government is as committed to press freedom as they claim to be, they must prevent future kidnappings and killings.”
Esqueda Castro covers crime and society and contributed to the local news sites Metropoli San Luis and Vox Populi.
Mexico is the deadliest country for journalists in the Western Hemisphere. In 2017, at least four journalists have been murdered in direct retaliation for their work, and CPJ is investigating the circumstances of another killing, according to CPJ research. CPJ has documented the disappearances of 14 journalists in Mexico, excluding Esqueda Castro. In May, journalist Salvador Adame Pardo was abducted from his home in the Mexican state of Michoacán.