Mexican Journalist Who Won Lawsuit Against Ex-State Governor Found Dead - Reports

Mexican journalist Lourdes Maldonado, who said she won a lawsuit against the former governor of Mexican state Baja California, Jaime Bonilla Valdez, has been found murdered close to her house in Tijuana, local news outlet Sol de Tijuana reported

MEXICO CITY (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 24th January, 2022) Mexican journalist Lourdes Maldonado, who said she won a lawsuit against the former governor of Mexican state Baja California, Jaime Bonilla Valdez, has been found murdered close to her house in Tijuana, local news outlet Sol de Tijuana reported.

According to preliminary police reports, Maldonado was attacked by armed men Sunday night when she drove up to her house. The journalist was reportedly shot in the head.

The newspaper reported last week that Maldonado declared that after nine years of litigation, she won a labor lawsuit against ex-governor Valdez, whose company, Primer Sistema de Noticias, was her employer. Maldonado also reportedly filed a lawsuit against former state attorney general Guillermo Ruiz Hernandez, lawyer of Valdez, accusing him of abuse of power and other crimes.

In 2019, Maldonado made her case against Valdez at a press conference held by Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, saying that she feared for her life. Since 2021, she had been under the protection of the Federal government.

Maldonado became the second journalist killed in the Baja California region in the past week. Crime reporter Margarito Martinez was shot on the doorstep of his home in Tijuana last Monday. Martinez had worked with local and international editors as a writer and photographer, specializing in regional crime.

Seven journalists were killed in Mexico in 2021, the highest rate across the world.