Extortion suspect in Playa del Carmen seeks release injunction

Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo — Federal courts in Cancún have received multiple injunction requests from Romeo N, accused of extortion in the irregular settlement of San Judas Tadeo, which led to the detention of 34 people demanding his release.

The Fourth and Eighth District Courts of the Federal Judiciary received the injunction petitions against the formal charges and detention order; however, no suspension has been granted so far.

These involve case files 1202/2025, 1198/2025, and 1266/2025 for indirect injunction proceedings, with the first two filed in the Fourth District Court and the third in the Eighth District Court.

Romeo N is challenging the formal charges ordered by a control judge of the Accusatory Penal System of Playa del Carmen on November 13, within criminal case file 924/2025.

According to information from the Quintana Roo State Attorney General’s Office, the accused was detained following a complaint filed by an affected person who allegedly requested a certain amount of money to allow connection to the electricity supply in the San Judas Tadeo invasion.

This irregular settlement is located on ejidal lands at the end of Juárez Avenue and has become the latest focus of acts related to high-impact crimes, stemming from hundreds of families who occupied the properties since 2024 and are in a situation of probable dispossession.

The day Romeo N was formally charged, a large group of residents from this settlement blocked Federal Highway 307, which serves as the main access to southern Playa del Carmen.

This caused serious impacts primarily on the tourism industry, as several visitors missed their flights. As a result, 34 residents of San Judas Tadeo were detained.

According to consulted sources and the hearing schedule of the Playa del Carmen Oral Criminal Court, this Monday afternoon, the detained group and accused individuals—some for disobedience and resistance of private parties—will have a hearing to resolve the provisional suspension of the probation process, through which they seek to obtain their freedom.