Mexico City ( Citizens kill two robbery suspects- Busted into jail and lynched one of the men )

Mob Kills 2 Suspected Thieves in Southern Mexico

MEXICO CITY – Two suspected thieves were cornered and lynched in San Isidro la Reforma, a town in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, state prosecutors said Tuesday.

The incident occurred on Sunday, when residents mobilized to find two individuals who had allegedly robbed the drivers of pick-up trucks a day earlier on the La Esperanza-La Reforma highway.

“The town decided to get together” and go find the thieves, who were spotted in the community of La Reforma, the Oaxaca Attorney General’s Office said in a statement.

A shootout occurred and one of the suspects, identified as 34-year-old Hugo Rigoberto Garcia Cruz, was killed, the AG’s office said.

The other suspect, identified as 22-year-old Laro Riaño Osorio, was detained and locked up in the town jail.

A mob, however, stormed the jail early Monday, broke down the door and grabbed Riaño Osorio, the AG’s office said.

Riaño Osorio’s body was found a few hours later in Chipiles with bullet wounds in the back, right temple and arm, prosecutors said.

Residents sometimes take the law into their own hands in Mexico, claiming they do not trust police and are fed up with the high crime rate.

Vigilante groups have appeared in recent months in several Mexican states, with the largest number being reported in the southern state of Guerrero and the western state of Michoacan. EFE