Kidnapped pollsters released in western Mexico, three still missing

[News_Editor]

Kidnapped pollsters released in western Mexico, three still missing

2011-08-03 20:33:34 GMT+7 (ICT)

MORELIA, MEXICO (BNO NEWS) -- Six pollsters who were kidnapped in western Mexico over the weekend have been released, officials said on Wednesday. Three other pollsters who were kidnapped on Monday remain missing.

The six workers disappeared on Saturday in the municipality of Apatzingan, which is located in the state of Michoacan which is the stronghold of drug cartel 'la Familia.' The firm, Mitofsky Consultation, reported that all contact had been lost with the workers and, only two days later, Parametria said three of their pollsters went missing as well.

Roy Campos, who is the President of Mitofsky Consultation, previously emphasized that their workers are decent people who were unarmed and were not carrying any cameras. Meanwhile, Parametria director Francisco Abundis said the three missing workers represented no threat to any group.

On Wednesday, Campos confirmed through his Twitter account that the workers - five men and one woman - are now free. "Yes, its confirmed," Campos said. "I celebrate the release of six people who carried out polls. I'm not celebrating that they went missing for several days. Three are still missing."

According to reports, one of the missing people was able to contact a local supervisor and informed that all six pollsters were now free and are currently traveling on their way back. However, the three Parametria workers remain missing.

According to Parametria, they were last seen on Monday at around 12 p.m. local time when a local supervisor picked up two pollsters from La Cofradia, a small village in the area. Since then, all contact was lost with the three people.

Abundis underlined that the polls are directed at researching public opinion and are not involved in any local disputes. He also noted that the kidnapping situation could simply be a "confusion" linked to organized crime since they had never received any threats and had always avoided 'dangerous' zones.

Local authorities carried out a door-to-door search in the area in hopes of finding the pollsters, but no trace had been found. Their vehicle, which had a license plate from Mexico City, was not seen either.

The six pollsters from the Mitofsky firm were previously identified as Claudia Ramirez Hernández, Juan Manuel Juarez Nieto, Alejandro and Yotsin Guerrero Gonzalez, Eder Chavarria Monterrosas, and another who was simply identified as Julio Cesar. It is not yet known who kidnapped them.

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