The head of the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection (SSPC), Omar García Harfuch, ruled out on Tuesday that the explosion of a car bomb in Coahuayana, Michoacán, was an act of terrorism. According to his statement during President Claudia Sheinbaum's morning briefing, the events were more related to the intention of criminal groups to expand their illicit activities. The head of the SSPC's explanation states that terrorism implies having political, religious, or social objectives, which he affirmed did not occur in this case, so it is ruled out both nationally and internationally. García Harfuch also echoed the statements of the governor of Michoacán, Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla, who affirmed that there is not yet a conclusive hypothesis about the car bomb that exploded on Saturday, nor is it possible to link it to a possible reaction from organized crime to the implementation of the so-called Plan Michoacán. President Sheinbaum Pardo also affirmed that the explosion was a result of the criminal groups in Michoacán and their actions in the state. Likewise, the secretary highlighted that new hypotheses are being worked on around the investigations of the events, which were officially taken over by the Attorney General's Office (FGR), now headed by Ernestina Godoy Ramos, who was absent from the conference. He added that they will be the ones to update the information provided last Sunday in a press conference by the state prosecutor of Michoacán, Carlos Torres Piña. In that media appearance, the head of the FGE gave details of the ongoing investigation and confirmed that the van loaded with explosives was a black Dakota, which entered Michoacán via Highway 200 that connects this entity with the state of Colima, around 8:30 in the morning. Subsequently, it arrived at the San Vicente community around 8:35, to advance to the municipal headquarters kiosk and the San Vicente roundabout at approximately 9:30. However, the detonation of the explosives was not recorded until 11:40, on a weekend when the square was full of people and merchants. The blast wave of the explosion, which reached between 300 and 400 meters, affected 12 more vehicles and an undetermined number of buildings near the area, including the community hospital and the municipal presidency itself. You may be interested > Homicides fall 37% in the first 14 months of Sheinbaum | Security Report This attack comes amid the implementation of the state pacification program, announced by President Sheinbaum Pardo, in the first days of November and following the murder of the former mayor of Uruapan, Carlos Manzo Rodríguez. The 'Plan Michoacán for Peace and Justice', was announced as a comprehensive strategy of the Mexican government that combines security, social well-being, and economic development to reduce violence in the state.
