34 Face Charges for Playa del Carmen Highway Blockade

Playa del Carmen, Mexico — Authorities are moving to formally charge 34 individuals apprehended during a highway blockade last week, with a court hearing scheduled for this Friday to determine their legal status. The detainees are members of the San Judas Tadeo irregular settlement and were arrested during a protest that blocked a major roadway to demand the release of a man accused of extortion.

The hearing for the formulation of charges and linking the group to a legal process, investigated for the crime of attacks on means of communication, will be held on Friday, November 21, according to State Attorney General Raciel López Salazar.

“We proceeded with the detention of a total of 34 people for their probable responsibility in acts constituting attacks on the means of communication, committed to the detriment of society,” stated the state's top prosecutor. “The detainees are at the disposal of a control judge who imposed the justified preventative prison measure on them, while their legal status is determined according to the law next November 21.”

The detentions are connected to a highway blockade that lasted for approximately four hours on the southern entrance to Playa del Carmen. This action was carried out by inhabitants of the aforementioned irregular zone located on communal land, where public order problems have commonly arisen.

“This past November 13, a group of approximately 100 people demonstrated on the highway from Playa del Carmen to Tulum, on North 50th Avenue, at the height of the Centro Maya shopping mall, in the municipality of Playa del Carmen,” he added. “It is true, the demonstrators were demanding the release of a person identified as Romeo, who was identified as a leader of the San Judas Tadeo invasion, who was detained by investigative police elements.”

These detained individuals had a first court hearing this past weekend to determine the legality of their arrest by local police. Following this, prosecutors will seek to formalize the accusation, and if sufficient evidence is presented, the individuals are poised to remain in detention while the stage of investigation for the criminal process begins.