Friday, February 22, 2013

Two Mexican policemen have been charged with rape and abuse of authority after attacking an Italian woman in the resort of Playa del Carmen

A third man, reportedly their commander, is still being sought. The woman was raped after being unable to pay a bribe for the officers to ignore an offense of urinating in public. The incident comes just weeks after six Spanish women were sexually assaulted by a gang in Acapulco. Prosecutors in the state of Quintana Roo say that the latest attack happened in an alleyway between two clubs in the Caribbean resort in the early hours of February 12, 2013. The woman said that the officers raped her after she and her companion refused to hand over a bribe of 3,000 pesos ($235). She said that they had gone into the alley after leaving a club and failing to find a public lavatory. The tourism industry is increasingly concerned about the damaging effect such attacks have on business. President Enrique Pena Nieto has vowed to tackle violent crime in Mexico since coming to power at the end of 2012. However, critics say that a major overhaul of the local and federal police forces is needed to address endemic problems of corruption, violence and impunity. Following the attack in Acapulco, six men were arrested. The arrests came after intense international pressure on local authorities.

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