A La Paz resident publicly accused municipal police and Mexican marines of using excessive force against him Tuesday night while he rushed to his terminally ill mother’s home in the Villas del Encanto neighborhood. Francisco, who was identified only by his first name, said a convoy of four security vehicles collided with his car as he parked partially in his driveway, then surrounded him at gunpoint.
Officers Drew Weapons, Attempted to Enter Home
Francisco told reporters he had received an urgent call about his mother, who has terminal cancer, and drove immediately to her house. As he pulled into the driveway, a joint patrol of marines and municipal police struck his vehicle, damaging both sides of his car. He said no officer gave him a verbal stop order before the collision.
After the crash, officers, some of them hooded, surrounded Francisco with long guns drawn. “All the police were pointing at me,” he said, adding that one officer discharged a weapon without justification. The officers then attempted to enter the private residence without presenting a judicial warrant, according to his account.
Francisco’s mother fainted during the confrontation and had to be transported to a hospital. Villas del Encanto sits in the southern part of La Paz, the capital of Baja California Sur, a city of roughly 300,000 people located about 900 miles south of the U.S. border at Tijuana.
No Resolution From Traffic Authorities
Francisco said he visited local traffic authorities the following day to seek compensation for the damage to his vehicle. Officials there offered no immediate remedy, instead referring him to an internal inspection process. He has called publicly for accountability from both the municipal police department and the Mexican Navy, which oversees marine patrols.
Joint military and police patrols became common across Baja California Sur after the federal government expanded security operations in the state in recent years. The patrols typically involve marines, National Guard members, or army personnel riding alongside local officers in convoy formations. Critics have long argued that these operations lack adequate civilian oversight.
Neither the La Paz municipal police department nor the Mexican Navy’s regional command has issued a public response to the allegations. Francisco said he plans to file a formal complaint and is seeking legal counsel to pursue damages, according to BCS Noticias.