Isla Mujeres Officials Accused of Selective Enforcement in Business Closures

Isla Mujeres, Quintana Roo — A new complaint accuses the Isla Mujeres municipal government of selectively enforcing environmental and administrative rules, allowing some businesses to continue operating while others face closures, heavy fines and constant inspections.

The complaint comes after the municipality issued a statement defending its closure of a construction-materials quarry owned by businessman Rigoberto Nava, a business that has operated for more than 24 years. Nava has said municipal officials tried to extort him.

Municipal statement lacks specifics

The official statement, which is unsigned and not attributed to any specific agency, said the closure was in response to families’ complaints about alleged dynamite explosions, constant heavy-vehicle traffic, dust pollution and various environmental and urban-development irregularities. However, it did not specify which rules were violated, which authority performed technical assessments, or what inspections found.

Nava has said the dispute began after he refused to pay a “quota” of material that he called extortion. He said he was later summoned by the municipal general secretary, Hugo Sánchez Montalvo, who asked him how much material he extracted daily. After that, the municipality demanded payment of property taxes, even though the quarry sits on ejido land, and later imposed a fine of nearly 20 million pesos as a result of three closures ordered by civil protection, ecology and urban development officials.

Scrapyards allowed to keep operating

The new complaint argues that the same standards are not being applied to other businesses. It notes that scrapyards and recycling centers in the same area continue to carry out activities such as metal cutting and welding, materials storage and heavy-vehicle operations, with no visible inspections or closures.

According to the complaint, some of those establishments even have reports on file from the municipality’s ecology department, yet authorities have taken no similar action. The complaint clarifies that it is not criticizing the recycling industry itself, but rather the apparent selective application of the law.

Nava also publicly blames Sánchez Montalvo for leading an alleged extortion scheme that, he says, affects owners of marinas, docks, bars, restaurants and other businesses in the municipality.

The accusations have drawn national attention. President Claudia Sheinbaum called on Isla Mujeres business owners to file formal complaints with the Security Cabinet so federal authorities can investigate the allegations and determine whether public officials should be held responsible.