Acatic, Jalisco: A Chronology of the Villaseñor Family Kidnapping

Paola Becerra: The following is the chronology of the disappearance of the Villaseñor Romo family.

Juan Carlos Marcelin: There are still many doubts. The Villaseñor Romo family disappeared on March 24. On that day in their last communication they asked their relatives to go to a nearby parking lot near the airport to receive a package. The family went but no one showed up.

Julio, his wife Jimena, and little Julia Isabel were accompanied by Virginia, Julio’s sister and her 9 year old son Íker Fabricio Escoto Villaseñor. They left Mexico City through Querétaro and crossed through the state of Guanajuato to later enter Jalisco.

The following day, March 2, the complaint was filed. Relatives went to Acatic, the municipality where they received their last known location, and the kidnappers had left behind messages. They contacted the media and posted everything on social media. The case went viral. On Monday, April 5, it was reported that 7 Acatic police officers, including the general commissioner, were in custody.

They had a direct participation in the disappearance. The second in command, the chief commissioner escaped. A security camera in the toll booth captured the moment the family passed by. Being escorted by the Municipal Police.

Two of these 7 detained elements already had an arrest warrant for the same crime of forced disappearance. The municipal authorities have maintained total secrecy despite there being direct accusations to their elements.

On the same Monday, the State Prosecutor indicated that both Julio and his sister Virginia were closely related to an armed attack against a man. That occurred on March 19 in the streets of the Ciudad del Sol neighborhood in Zapopan.

Apparently Julio was a partner in some of the businesses of the man who was shot. It hasn’t been clarified just what participation he had on the day of the events. In Acatic they implemented operations with hundreds of investigative elements.

On Thursday, April 8, little Julia, one and a half years old, was found in the municipality of La Barca. At dawn on April 9, the captors released the rest of the family in the town of La Laja, a municipality of Zapotlanejo. Between Acatic and La Barca there are 105 kilometers of distance. Acatic and La Laja are separated by 37 kilometers.

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