Posted on 04/24/2007 10:05:15 AM PDT by SwinneySwitch
OAXACA, Mexico — The son of the U.S. consul in southern Oaxaca state was stabbed during an apparent mugging, U.S. Consul Mark Leyes said Monday.
Leyes said three assailants beat and stabbed his son, Marcos Leyes Perez, and then took his money after he left a disco in Oaxaca City at about 1 a.m. Sunday.
Leyes said his son, whose liver was punctured, was the victim of a mugging and his assailants probably did not know he was the son of the U.S. consul. He was listed in stable condition at a local hospital, the government news agency Notimex reported.
"I consider this to be the result of a common crime that could have happened anywhere and to anyone," Leyes said.
No arrests have been made, Notimex reported.
The U.S. State Department has issued warnings to American travelers heading to Mexico, saying they should be aware of increased drug violence and violent protests in certain states, including Oaxaca.
Oaxaca ping!
If you want on, or off this S. Texas/Mexico ping list, please FReepMail me.
Gosh I hope he’s fine - having a liver punctured would cause massive bleeding.
The ordinary Mexican, never mind criminals, hates us with a passion. The hate seeths just beneath the surface. In Third world countries, envy and resentment is huge, and ever present.
Crimes against "tourists", including murders and "disappearances", are downplayed or not publicized at all.
I speak the language perfectly and can pass myself off as just another clueless gringo.
Not going back. Certainly not with anyone I care about.
Why doesn't our "state department" issue warnings to illegal aliens heading to the United States, warning them that they are breaking the law and could be shot on sight? Fat chance, with GWBush in charge.
Being out and around in any U.S. city after "about 1 a.m." is dangerous enough, but in Mexico it's just askin' for it...
Just business as usual. Surprised it was someone this high up but at 1AM who cares. Isn't it strange how papa thought his son was immune to violence as he is the son of a U.S. consul?
The Bush adminstration will wait till the consuls kid is out of the hospital before arresting him for upsetting a ... Oh never mind.
Too bad. Wife and I liked to spend a week or two on the Pacific beaches, then a day or two in real Mexico (Oaxaca was one of our favorites.) The last time we visited Mexico City, it was hard to miss the near Martial Law level of police around the Zona Rosa and anywhere near a bank or government building. Lots of shotguns and tommy guns in the hands of vary young men.
Oaxaca is a beautiful place and anyone used to be able to walk around there in the middle of the night with no problem. It has wonderful food and for the most part, wonderful people. It went down hill (surprise) after the “populist” (really communist) uprisings last year. The same leftist idiots, Subcomandante Marcos and like, who ruined Chiapas have now started in on Oaxaca. At one point the normal people of Oaxaca had a counter-demonstration against the Leftists, which resulted in bloodshed.
Los Hermanos Sosa (that’s “the Sosa Brothers” for you non-Spanish speakers), the leaders of the Oaxaca rioting, were arrested in December. Fox wouldn’t move on it, Calderon did. That is *some* progress.
I did not realize Calderon had arrested them. They richly deserve it, having disrupted the entire regional economy, which isn’t exactly robust at the best of times, and driven the tourists out. Viva Calderon.
The arrests occurred shortly after Calderon took office (even while the leftist PRD tried to block his access to the podium to take the oath and sash). It was good theater. The Sosa brothers were easy to spot. The one weighing about 240 lbs. was videotaped throwing a soda bottle with a lighted fuse into a downtown dwelling. That incident was replayed on Mexican TV for three days. There is some progress.
I saw the swearing-in ceremony, complete with hoodlums, on Univision. It got replayed on Spanish TV in this country several dozen times. Univision promoed it heavily. Fat Flavio is the one who needs to cut back on the tortilla consumption. Perhaps a longish stay in a Mexican jail will work Weight-watcher’s magic on him.
I just got back from diving in Cozumel yesterday. Been there several times and have never had a single problem.
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