MURDER IN MEXICO

A Second Massacre In One Small Northern Town Dramatizes The
Underbelly Of Nation

Almost eight months ago, residents in the rural Mexican county of San
Fernando received startling news: The bodies of 72 immigrants
traveling to the U.S. had been discovered on a secluded ranch after
the group had been lined up, blindfolded and shot dead.

Now, the sense of horror has returned. Last week, officials said they
had discovered mass graves on another secluded ranch there. Some 88
dead have been unearthed so far as forensics teams continue to dig for others.

That history has repeated itself in San Fernando may be no surprise.
It fits the profile of a lawless county: Fewer than 60,000 people
live in an expanse of hundreds of square miles; it lies along a major
highway that snakes up to the border with Texas, making it a good
place to ferry U.S.-bound illegal drugs. Hot flatlands of sorghum
stretch out for acres from the main town, the area's cash crop whose
isolated ranches also serve as the gathering points of organized
crime groups. A small municipal police station usually has four
officers on patrol.

Some say San Fernando is out of the reach of the law. Rosa Maria
Lozano de Anda, an art teacher in the town, said her cousin was
kidnapped in February and hasn't been heard from since. Her reaction
after the bodies were found shows the hardened psychology among some
countryside dwellers, where violence has become the norm. "What did I
feel when I heard? The truth is it made me happy: Finally those whose
loved ones had disappeared knew that they were dead. They'll bury
them and in 24 hours they'll get over it."

The August massacre claimed no victims from San Fernando. The 72 dead
were immigrants traveling north to the U.S. from places like
Honduras, Guatemala, Ecuador and Brazil. Authorities said the
travelers were apprehended by Los Zetas, a criminal group that mixes
drug trafficking with other rackets like extortion and kidnapping for ransom.

One immigrant who managed to escape told investigators that victims
had been given the choice of paying money to be released, or joining
Los Zetas as drug runners and hit men. But they were killed instead,
the reasons for which are still unclear. Days later, the two
investigators who had been assigned to the case were also killed.

This time around, however, the victims were likely entirely Mexican.
Officials said the dead included a group who were kidnapped in March
on public buses by Los Zetas. Most of the bodies were transported
north last week to the city of Matamoros, the nearest major city, for
identification as weary families followed them to hear if their loved
ones were among the dead. So dangerous are the roadways that this
past weekend several Mexican bus lines said they had suspended bus
service through Tamaulipas state, partly because of the San Fernando incidents.

In the months between the two massacres, San Fernando and surrounding
Tamaulipas state have become a no-man's land. Piles of bullet-ridden
bodies have been found along the county's roadsides, in various
states of decay. Shootouts between sport-utility vehicles-cars
popular among drug traffickers-have erupted nearly on a daily basis.
On most days, when twilight settles on the area, the streets of San
Fernando, the county seat, empty as residents give way to the
criminals who own the highways and country roads, residents say.

Locals have turned to their churches for guidance, but even Catholic
priests appeared guarded about the situation. At Mass, pastors are
"at risk if they spoke about the crimes," said a man at a San
Fernando church recently, who refused to give his name. "People have
learned to read in between the lines at sermons."

The man emailed a reporter pictures he had taken in recent months of
abandoned sport-utility vehicles that are now a common sight along
the roads. One snapshot showed the remains of a truck beside a
sorghum field, its frame barely standing. In another, a bullet-pocked
Ford sits with its tires missing, telltale signs of a fierce firefight.

Authorities, including the state prosecutor, are not discussing the
latest massacre, wary of what happened to the investigators last
time. The town mayor didn't respond to written questions nor did
other Tamaulipas state officials. Many in the state government have
been keeping low profiles since last year when the leading candidate
for governor was shot dead on a highway days before his election.

Anxiety rules even in the San Fernando police office. On a recent day
it was empty, save for a receptionist. It has been attacked twice by
armed commandos, the last time in October when men sprayed the
building with bullets.

"I hid under my desk," the receptionist said. "I was the only one here."