People in Mexico are rallying behind an unknown vigilante who has taken to the streets, hunting down thieves and leaving them taped up for authorities. Mexican authorities have already begun investigating the incidents, aiming to arrest the vigilante.
Not much is known about the individual or individuals. Locals began calling him the Batman of Lagos de Moreno, a reference to the municipality in Jalisco where he operates. In a matter of days, the vigilante has managed to subdue and apprehend five motorcycle thieves and tied them up to light poles for locals to find the next morning.
The first incident surfaced on June 12, Mexico’s Sinembargo.mx reported. In that case, authorities found one man tied up to a light pole with the word “Rata” (thief) written on his forehead with a black marker. Next to the man, authorities found a motorcycle that had previously been reported stolen. The case comes at a time when Lagos de Moreno has seen a rise in motorcycle thefts this year, with more than 30 cases.
In the following days, authorities found four more men tied up in similar scenarios. In some cases, authorities found poster boards with threatening messages warning others about committing crimes in the region.
Rather than arrest and prosecute the alleged thieves, Mexican authorities are considering them victims of assault and kidnapping and have begun a manhunt of sorts in an attempt to locate the unknown vigilante, SinEmbargo.mx reported. None of the alleged thieves have filed charges against the vigilante. They have also refused to assist police in the investigation.
Authorities have not been able to determine if the vigilante is one person acting alone or a group of men, possibly cartel gunmen enforcing unsanctioned crimes. The second scenario is highly likely since Jalisco is largely controlled by the terrorist organization Cartel Jalisco New Generation.
The popularity of the vigilante comes at a time when Mexico continues to deal with high levels of violent crime at the hands of terrorist drug cartels. While the United States has pressured Mexico into eradicating cartels, Mexico’s government continues to hide behind claims of national sovereignty in an attempt to limit international interference.
The actions taken by the alleged vigilante in Mexico are eerily similar to those in the movie Citizen Vigilante, which appears to be successful at the box office and on streaming platforms. Breitbart’s John Nolte reported Citizen Vigilante has raked in more than $67 million worldwide — nearly exceeding the revenue earned by Supergirl.
Citizen Vigilante is currently number one on Amazon Prime and number two on Apple TV, Nolte reported.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.