Former Mexican governor charged in disappearance of 43 students: 'Ordered to destroy documentation'
Angel Aguirre, former governor of the state of Guerrero, has been officially charged with involvement in the 2014 disappearance of 43 students — one of the most harrowing cases in Mexican history, which became a symbol of cartel violence and official cover-ups. The country's president pledged to uncover the truth: 'I will invest all my efforts.'
Angel Aguirre, former governor of the state of Guerrero, was charged on Thursday with forced disappearance and obstruction of justice. According to the indictment, he ordered the destruction of security camera footage that could have shed light on the fate of students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College on the night of September 26, 2014. A judge ruled yesterday that the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence to proceed to trial and ordered Aguirre to be held in a high-security prison pending the proceedings.
Aguirre's lawyer, Guillermo Bardas, denied the allegations. He stated that the defense has presented evidence showing that Aguirre was attending a high-level meeting at the time he was allegedly handed the security footage.
The indictment against the former governor is considered the most significant development in the investigation since the 2022 arrest of Jesus Murillo Karam, who served as Mexico's attorney general at the time of the kidnapping. More than a decade later, the remains of only three missing students have been identified, and the fate of the other 40 remains unknown.
On the night of their disappearance, students from the Raul Isidro Burgos Teachers' College seized several buses in the city of Iguala, intending to travel to a demonstration in Mexico City. Before they could leave the city, they were attacked by a local criminal gang operating in collusion with municipal police.
An international investigation determined that federal forces, including police and soldiers, were also involved in the affair, either through direct participation or by failing to intervene as the students were taken from the scene and likely murdered.
According to the investigation, the government in power at the time conducted a complex cover-up operation to shift full responsibility onto the gang and local police. Suspects were tortured to extract false confessions, and crime scene evidence was tampered with.
"We do not want any more deception. We want them to tell us the truth and for those responsible to be punished," said Meliton Ortega, a spokesperson for the families of the 43 students. "The victims from Guerrero deserve for the perpetrators and planners to be punished, instead of us seeing only a show, as has happened in serious cases of human rights violations."
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has pledged to uncover the truth and established a dedicated investigative unit last year. "I will invest all my efforts, all my energy, and all my willpower into achieving truth and justice," she said last week.
