Mexico arrests alleged cartel kingpin tied to 43 missing students
Al Jazeera
Gildardo Lopez Astudillo’s arrest comes weeks before the 10th anniversary of the students’ disappearance.
Authorities in Mexico say they have arrested an alleged cartel chief linked to the decade-old disappearance of dozens of students.
Gildardo Lopez Astudillo, the suspected cartel leader, was detained on charges of “organised crime” and taken to the Altiplano maximum security prison in south-central Mexico, Reuters news agency reported, citing a federal security source.
This is the second time Lopez Astudillo, known as “El Gil”, has been jailed since the cartel he allegedly leads was accused of orchestrating the disappearance and suspected murder in 2014 of 43 students in Iguala, a case that rocked the nation and ignited years of protests.
The arrest of Lopez Astudillo comes as relatives prepare demonstrations to mark the 10th anniversary of the students’ disappearance.
He was first arrested in 2015 before being released in 2019 after a judge found the evidence against him was obtained illegally.
