The Mexican federal government is now overseeing the case of the nine murdered members of a rural Sonora community.
Interior Secretary Olga Sanchez told reporters this week that the federal Attorney General’s Office would be handling the entire case moving forward. In part, she says, that’s because state Attorney’s Offices don’t have the resources to do so.
A spokesperson for the Sonoran Attorney’s Office, which had been leading the investigation of the murders but not other suspected crimes under federal jurisdiction, confirmed the transfer. The federal Attorney’s Office said that it would be taking over the murder case in order to consolidate all lines of investigation, according to a recent release.
“The federal government and the state government, they’re working side by side each other to solve the case,” said Matthew Langford, whose sister Christina Langford Johnson was one of three women killed. “Everybody’s working together, and they’re doing a great job.”
He and other family members met with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador this week for updates on the case. He said the planned 45-minute meeting went well over two hours.
“He received us with open arms,” Langford said. “They were nothing but good to us, and they’re doing the best they can. I just hope God can help them and they can get it done, figure this out.”
EDITOR'S NOTE: The story has been updated to correct the spelling of Matthew Langford's name.
