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Dispossessed homes used by criminals, experts report
🇲🇽 Mexico /Crime & Justice

Dispossessed homes used by criminals, experts report

From El Universal · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Property dispossession in Mexico is a growing problem, with an estimated 3,500 cases annually in Mexico City alone, totaling over 60,000 in 15 years.
  • Criminal groups are increasingly using dispossessed properties as bases for illegal activities, including storage of contraband and operational centers.
  • High levels of impunity plague the crime, with only 7% of cases resulting in an arrest and a mere 1% leading to a conviction, making property recovery extremely difficult for victims.

Property dispossession is a significant and escalating issue in Mexico, with experts highlighting its increasing use by criminal organizations. In Mexico City alone, an estimated 3,500 cases of property dispossession are recorded annually, accumulating to over 60,000 cases in the past 15 years, according to research presented by Rodrigo Meneses Reyes, a professor and researcher at CIDE.

The first documented cases of dispossession occurred among criminal groups themselves. When a criminal group enters a rival territory and exterminates or subjugates a rival group, the tactic of booty is normally employed.

— David SaucedoExplaining the initial origins of property dispossession tactics used by criminal groups.

David Saucedo, a security specialist, explained that criminal groups have evolved their tactics, initially using dispossession as "booty" after taking over rival territories. Now, these dispossessed properties serve as crucial assets for organized crime. They are utilized as warehouses for illegal goods and strategic centers for criminal operations, making them highly profitable.

Once the properties are taken, they are proving very profitable.

— Rodrigo Meneses ReyesHighlighting the economic incentive for criminal groups to engage in property dispossession.

Meneses Reyes expressed concern that these seized properties are being integrated into the infrastructure of organized crime. The process is often facilitated by corruption, with simulated sales contracts and the involvement of notaries and lawyers creating a veneer of legality. Legitimate owners are tricked into signing documents as if they had received payment for a sale, when in reality, their property has been forcibly taken.

The legitimate owners of ranches, commercial premises, and industrial warehouses would sign as if they had received payment for a supposed sale that was actually a dispossession of some property.

— David SaucedoDescribing the fraudulent methods used to legitimize property dispossession.

The problem is compounded by staggering levels of impunity. Saucedo noted that out of approximately 60,000 recorded cases in Mexico City, only 7% have led to an arrest, and a mere 1% have resulted in a conviction. Furthermore, property recovery is minimal, with only 2% of victims successfully regaining their properties or assets. Experts argue that simply increasing penalties is insufficient and that a more comprehensive strategy is needed to combat this pervasive crime.

We are talking about 60,000 crimes, and only in 2% of those cases have people managed to return to their properties or recover their assets.

— Rodrigo Meneses ReyesIllustrating the extremely low rate of property recovery for victims of dispossession.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Universal in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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