A mayor in western Mexico has been arrested amid an investigation into a suspected drug cartel training camp, where victims were allegedly tortured or killed for refusing to cooperate.
According to federal sources, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel — one of the country’s most powerful criminal organizations — operated the training site on a ranch in Teuchitlan, Jalisco state. The ranch is believed to have served as a recruitment and training ground for cartel gunmen.
Authorities discovered human bones and clothing on the property in March, prompting outrage across Mexico. Human Rights Watch described the site as a possible “mass killing site.”
Teuchitlan Mayor José Murguía Santiago was arrested Saturday in connection with the investigation, a federal official told AFP. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Murguía is being investigated for possible complicity or failure to act against cartel activities.
The ranch came to national attention after Guerreros Buscadores — a collective searching for missing persons — described it as an “extermination center” containing clandestine crematoriums. The group had uncovered bones, clothing, and other items that had been missed during an earlier raid in September, which followed reports of gunfire.
At that time, the Jalisco state prosecutor’s office reported rescuing two captives, arresting ten suspects, and recovering a corpse and skeletal remains.
Although Mexico’s Security Minister Omar García Harfuch stated in March there was “no evidence” the ranch served as an extermination camp, he confirmed that a captured cartel recruiter had admitted recruits were tortured and murdered if they refused to comply or attempted escape.
Following a formal complaint by Guerreros Buscadores, the attorney general’s office took over the investigation. The office has so far denied claims that executions were systematic at the site.
In addition to Murguía, a dozen individuals — including a neighboring municipality’s police chief and two of his officers — have been arrested. The case underscores Mexico’s ongoing struggle with cartel violence and impunity.
As of 2025, more than 127,000 people are listed as missing in Mexico, most since the government launched a militarized campaign against drug cartels in 2006. Jalisco alone accounts for over 15,000 missing persons cases — the highest in the country.
