Army, National Guard forces strengthened to combat crime in Acapulco

Security forces are to be reinforced in Acapulco, Guerrero, amid a wave of violence in the tourist destination.

More than 600 additional military personnel will be stationed in the beach city to combat the high incidence of homicides, kidnappings and extortion.

Three-hundred-and-twenty of the new personnel are National Guardsmen and 290 are soldiers. Increased security presence is also expected in the cities of Iguala and Chilpancingo.

Small business owners in Acapulco have been afflicted by the violence in recent months. Since October, 2021 eight transport workers were killed in the city, and three service workers were murdered on the beach. On Sunday, the owner of a chain of 14 pharmacies was found dead on a highway in a likely extortion case.

A security plan called Refuerzo 2021 (Reinforcement 2021) was announced on November 8. The plan coordinates federal, state and municipal security forces to enable more patrols and establish road checkpoints in high-crime areas, but business owners and the head of the Acapulco federation of chambers of commerce have labeled it ineffective.

The head of the ninth military regiment of Guerrero, General Celestino Ávila, said Acapulco was one of 50 municipalities considered a priority for the government due to its high homicide rate.

From January through November, there were 1,260 homicides in Guerrero, of which 418 occurred in Acapulco, according to data from the National Public Security System (SENSP).

With reports from Reforma and Infobae