Prosecutor in case of 43 missing students in Mexico resigns amid controversies

By Jorge Antonio Rocha

MEXICO CITY (AA) - Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador confirmed Tuesday that the lead prosecutor in the case of 43 disappeared students has resigned.

"He is going to leave office, I have that information, and the prosecutor's office will appoint another prosecutor. We will continue... there are differences, and all points of view are respected," Lopez Obrador said at a news conference.

The resignation of Omar Gomez Trejo from the case follows a series of controversies that have drawn criticism of the president's handling of the case.

Unknown sources leaked to national media during the weekend instant messaging screenshots allegedly between members of the criminal organization, Guerreros Unidos -- the drug trafficking organization known to be partially responsible for the disappearances of the students from a teacher's school in Iguala, Guerrero on Sept. 26, 2014.

The messages describe in detail how organized crime members acted on orders from the former governor of Iguala, Jose Luis Abarca, and killed and disappeared the students with the help of members of the army and navy.

The leak stirred condemnation within the federal government and the special commission investigating the case.

Undersecretary of human rights in Mexico, Alejandro Encinas, who also leads the Commission for Truth and Access to Justice in the Ayotzinapa case, said it was "absolutely irresponsible and disrespectful to the fathers and mothers of the missing students."

Authorities do not know what was the source of the leak.

In addition, of the more than 80 arrest warrants from the latest findings of the investigation, 21 have been dismissed at the request of the prosecutor's office.

All dismissed warrants were against high-ranking public officials involved in the disappearance, 16 are members of the military.

There have only been four warrants executed from the 83, causing uproar from fathers and mothers of the students who have been in the streets fighting for justice for the past eight years.

​​​​​​​The parents of the missing students called for an annual demonstration in Mexico City on Sept. 26.

They pondered the developments in the last week as they urged the government to bring the culprits to justice.