Two Men Arrested Over Mexican Priest's Murder

MORELIA, Mexico, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 04th Oct, 2016 ) - Mexican authorities have arrested two men over the murder of a priest whose slaying followed the killing of two other Roman Catholic clerics in another part of the country.

The prosecutor's office in the western state of Michoacan said the murder of Father Jose Alfredo Lopez Guillen was the result of "differences" between the priest and his killers during a meeting two weeks ago.

Lopez Guillen was last seen on September 19 when he ordered food at his parish residence. The suspects were at his residence and after a discussion went bad they tied him up, covered him in a sheet and put him in the trunk of a car, the prosecutor's office said in a statement.

The men also stole objects from the residence and later shot him four times.

Lopez Guillen's bullet-riddled body was found near a road on September 25. The suspects were arrested on Monday. The prosecutor's office denied that the murder was the result of a kidnapping, related to organized crime or a hate crime.

Lopez Guillen's disappearance took place the same week that two other priests were murdered in the eastern state of Veracruz after sharing drinks with their killers, according to local authorities.

The Roman Catholic Church blasted the authorities in Veracruz for implying that alcohol was partly to blame for the violence. Fifteen priests have been killed in Mexico since President Enrique Pena Nieto took office in December 2012, according to the Catholic Multimedia Center, which tracks crimes against clergy.