Two police officers arrested in Mexico for recruiting youths for drug trafficking

Police in Mexico have arrested two municipal officers accused of recruiting young people into criminal organizations. The arrests took place in the state of Jalisco, where a drug trafficking training camp was uncovered nearly three months ago.

The police officers served in the town of San Cristóbal de la Barranca. They were detained after state law enforcement received a tip that two young men, aged 17 and 18, were about to be recruited “for illicit purposes” at a bus station. At the scene, the youths encountered a woman who identified the two uniformed officers as her accomplices.

Originally from the neighboring state of Michoacán, the young men said they had traveled to Jalisco after seeing a job offer on social media. According to AFP, this is not an isolated case. Last year, media outlets and search groups reported 30 disappearances near the bus terminal— all involving people who came to the area after responding to job offers.

This is also not the first time that authorities have been arrested for acting as recruiters. In connection with the previously mentioned training camp, known as Rancho Izaguirre, two agents from the Attorney General's Office and two former police officers were detained. Human remains and evidence of torture were discovered at the camp.