Mexica arrests top security official over mayor's beheading

Mexican authorities have arrested Germán Reyes, the top security official in Chilpancingo, in connection with the brutal murder of Mayor Alejandro Arcos last month.

The killing of Alejandro Arcos, whose beheaded body was found just days after he had been sworn in as mayor, caused shock and revulsion in the violence-wracked state of Guerrero, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

On Tuesday, police detained Germán Reyes, who is the top security official in Chilpancingo, for his alleged role in the murder.

Germán Reyes has denied any involvement in the crime and has said he is being used as a scapegoat.

Rights groups have long warned that local security forces in Mexico are being infiltrated by powerful criminal gangs, which bribe, blackmail and threaten local officials to make them compliant.

The brutal murder of Mayor Arcos within a week of him taking office on 1 October, and Tuesday's arrest of Reyes is seen by many in Chilpancingo as further evidence of attempts by local criminal groups to tighten their grip on the city and its authorities.

The fact that Reyes - a retired army captain who headed the office of the Guerrero state prosecutor for serious crimes before taking over as Chilpancingo's acting security chief - has been named as the main suspect in the mayor's murder has sent further shock waves through the city.

News.Az