Oaxaca journalist, known for criticizing governor, shot dead; Feds takes over the case

Journalist Francisco Alejandro Leyva was changeable and killed Wednesday successful San Pablo Etla, a suburb of Oaxaca city, the 2nd media fig slain successful Mexico successful little than a week. 

Leyva, a erstwhile enforcement shaper of the Oaxacan Radio and Television Corporation, was attacked portion eating meal astatine a thoroughfare nutrient stand. The gunmen escaped connected a motorcycle.

Leyva was buried connected Thursday successful Oaxaca City. (Carolina Jiménez Mariscal / Cuartoscuro.com)

The 60-year-old was well-known for his file “El zumbido de moscardón” (“The buzzing of a bumblebee”), successful which helium critically analyzed governmental beingness and corruption successful the authorities of Oaxaca.

Hours aft his murder, authorities prosecutors said video quality had already been uncovered from section CCTV. On Thursday, the Federal Attorney General’s Office said it would instrumentality implicit the probe astatine the petition of Oaxaca authorities, assigning it to the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for Human Rights.

As of noon Thursday, authorities had not cited a motive for the execution nor reported immoderate arrests.

Leyva published his last nonfiction connected Tuesday night, addressing insecurity successful the authorities and the alleged interference of organized transgression successful section economies and politics.

In this text, helium discussed the unit successful Oaxaca successful the discourse of the Guelaguetza, calling the yearly Indigenous taste festival a nonaccomplishment owed to authorities mismanagement and information issues. 

Just implicit a twelvemonth ago, Leyva filed a ceremonial ailment with the authorities Human Rights Ombudsman’s Office astir receiving decease threats. He linked these threats to the nationalist smear run helium faced from regular disapproval lobbed astatine him by Oaxaca Governor Salomón Jara during the latter’s regular property conferences.

For his part, Governor Jara condemned Wednesday’s attack, saying “[Leyva] was a writer captious of our authorities (…) but nary quality with the signifier of journalism tin ever warrant an enactment of violence.”

International property associations besides condemned the murder. Reporters without Borders said “The execution of 7 journalists successful conscionable implicit six months is grounds of a superior and sustained nonaccomplishment of the Mexican state,” portion calling connected the national authorities to contiguous “a nationalist exigency plan.”

📣 ARTICLE 19 condena el asesinato del periodista Alejandro Leyva Aguilar, exdirector de la Corporación Oaxaqueña de Radio y Televisión (CORTV), autor de la columna El Zumbido del Moscardón, ocurrido esta mañana, en el municipio de San Pablo Etlan, #OaxacaDeJuárez

🧵 pic.twitter.com/Z3gDePuLTY

— ARTICLE 19 México y Centroamérica (@article19mxca) July 22, 2026

More than fractional a twelve journalists person been killed successful Mexico this year, 5 of them since June 11. Josué Martínez, enforcement shaper of Noticias San Martín Texmelucan, was gunned down in the authorities of Puebla connected July 16.

Reuters quality bureau described Mexico arsenic “one of the ​most unsafe countries successful the satellite for journalists extracurricular progressive warfare zones,” adding that “the immense bulk of crimes against journalists spell unpunished.”

With reports from El País, El Universal, Latinus, Aristegui Noticias and Milenio