Mexico: Journalist Roxana Guzman, abducted in mid-June, found dead

The lifeless body of journalist Roxana Guzman, director of a local Mexican media outlet, has been found after her violent abduction from her home in mid-June. The Veracruz state prosecutor's office announced Friday that forensic examinations confirmed a body discovered in a rural house matched Guzman's. The investigation has led to the arrest of eight individuals, including four municipal police officers accused of providing logistical support to the criminal group responsible for her kidnapping. Guzman's abduction was captured on a 35-second video that circulated widely in Mexico, showing masked men forcing their way into her home. The incident has drawn condemnation from international press freedom organizations, with Reporters Without Borders denouncing the authorities' "inability to protect the press." Veracruz is one of Mexico's deadliest states for journalists; Guzman is the third reporter killed there in 2026. She had previously sought state protection in 2019 and had founded her own digital media outlet, Pulso Informativo del Sureste, after her partner, also a journalist, was murdered in 2017.

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The special rapporteur for freedom of expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) condemned this crime on X, calling for "continued investigations."