Author(s)

Siria Gastelum Felix

Posted on 15 Nov 2024

Assassination of Mexican fisheries leader casts a long shadow, signalling organized crime’s expanding grip on the country.

In October 2024, the Mexican Institute for Research in Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture honoured the legacy of Minerva Pérez, an outspoken leader in Mexico’s fishing industry, murdered three months prior. This public recognition came with a powerful message: the industry called on authorities to pursue justice and not let her murder go unpunished.

On 8 July 2024, Pérez had given an interview to the press as part of her role as the head of Mexico’s fishing industry chamber. Hours later, she was shot by unidentified gunmen as she drove away from her office in Ensenada, Baja California. She died in her car from fatal wounds to her torso and head. According to authorities, the killers had been following her and knew her route. More than 30 bullet casings were recovered from the crime scene.

Pérez’s murder sent shockwaves through Baja California, her home state. While the state is known for its rich marine resources, it has become a battleground where criminal organizations prey on communities and local industries. Violence in Baja California has surged to the point where it is now one of five ‘priority states’ for the new administration of President Claudia Sheinbaum, who faces an uphill battle to curb crime in regions heavily affected by organized crime and extortion. In the final month of outgoing President Obrador’s term and the beginning of Sheinbaum’s, authorities reported a drop in violent crimes such as homicides. However, extortion – the crime that Pérez had openly denounced as an insidious threat to the country’s fishing industry – remains rampant.

Pérez was the first woman to lead the fishing industry chamber and was also a member of the Mexican Council for the Promotion of Fishing and Aquaculture Products, a civil society organization dedicated to promoting the consumption of Mexican fish and seafood. She was the director and CEO of Atenea en el Mar, a seafood company she founded that specialized in shellfish harvesting, and owned other businesses.

Those who knew her remember Pérez as a courageous leader who often spoke out against illegal and unfair practices in the fishing industry. In her last interview, she called for more oversight by the authorities to curb illegal fishing of high-value species, such as lobster and abalone. ‘We need more surveillance from [the national fisheries authority] along the coasts,’ she said. ‘Illegal fishing supplies the same market as legal products, but bypasses all the production costs.’

This was not the first time Pérez had spoken out against illicit practices in the industry. In the months before her assassination, she had publicly spoken out against cartels demanding extortion or protection payments from boat and truck drivers, seafood restaurants and vendors. In February 2024, she spoke to the media about the rising incidents of extortion and racketeering. She explained how criminals had started by threatening the owners of fishing vessels, but had soon extended their extortive practices to the entire supply chain. ‘We see this across the sector – from small producers working to put food on the table to restaurant owners navigating the challenges of growing a small business,’ she said.

Over the past decade, criminal organizations have steadily expanded their presence around the Gulf of California, reaching the Mexican states of Sinaloa, Baja California Sur, Baja California and Sonora. Sources interviewed for this article agreed, off the record, that the cartels are involved in every stage of the seafood production chain – from ocean to table.

But who exactly are these cartels? In Mexico, identifying specific groups is complex, as criminal organizations, law enforcement, politicians and private-sector actors are all deeply intertwined in this intricate criminal network. For example, reports following the arrest, two weeks after Pérez’s murder, of Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada, the long-standing leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, suggested that politicians were involved in a web of connections that led to his kidnapping in Sinaloa by a rival faction leader and subsequent detention in the US.

Over the years, Mexican criminal groups have amassed significant resources and firearms, aided and abetted by corrupt interests, and confident in their impunity. These drug cartels have diversified their illicit activities, and have expanded into the illegal fishing of endangered species such as totoaba and other high-value marine fish. They have forged commercial relationships with criminal organizations in the US, China and other countries involved in international wildlife trafficking. These groups have also become illegal traders, dictating prices to fishermen and processors, threatening the livelihoods of fishing communities, the industry and the region’s biodiversity. In addition to these illegal activities, organized crime groups are attempting to infiltrate and monopolize legitimate fishing businesses.

To enforce their interests, a wide range of actors are involved in orchestrating assassinations in Mexico, and as these criminal organizations have grown in power, violence targeting those who investigate or expose organized crime and corruption has undoubtedly increased.

The motive for Pérez’s murder has yet to be confirmed, and the public prosecutor’s office initially pursued four lines of investigation. Two of these related to her exposure of the Sinaloa Cartel’s extortion practices and issues relating to illegal fishing. The other two lines of inquiry involved business relationships and personal matters. The authorities say that they are not ruling out any possibilities, but the chances of this case ending in impunity are high, as Mexico’s justice system is rife with fabricated truths.

Emma (not her real name), a fisher and activist, shared her sense of fear: ‘I feel a strong connection with her. How long did men lead [the fishing industry chamber] without anything happening? No one ever spoke up. Were the men complicit in the corruption that’s been brewing all this time, letting it flourish? And now, when a woman steps up and says, “I’m different”, she’s silenced like this?’ For her, the message is clear: ‘Don’t rock the boat.’

Impunity and organized crime are major threats to the legal fishing industry, jeopardizing its sustainability and economic viability. When criminal groups operate with minimal consequences, they engage in illegal practices that deplete and pollute marine resources, destabilize legitimate international markets and intimidate local communities, depriving them of opportunities. This situation puts law-abiding actors at a severe disadvantage and increases the risk to those who dare to speak out. Minerva Pérez’s murder highlights the pressing need for more effective measures to combat crime and corruption, and for better protection for those who expose criminal activity.

To build resilience within the fishing industry, Mexican authorities must focus on strengthening the prosecution of cartelized supply chains, promoting transparent legal processes within the industry, and protecting the leaders and activists who are essential to the community’s defence against organized crime. These steps are critical to breaking the cycle of violence and impunity that threatens to destabilize Mexico’s fishing sector – one that is not only an economic backbone, but also a key part of the cultural identity and social fabric of the country’s north-west region.

Emma recalls the day Pérez approached her at a conference. Hailing from a small fishing community, Emma was nervous about speaking at her first major event, while Pérez was an industry heavyweight. Pérez offered her words of encouragement, reminded her that they both came from fishing families and offered to help. For Emma, Pérez’s assassination feels all too personal. For the fishing industry, it was designed to send out a warning not to make waves. For the Mexican authorities and the international community, Pérez’s death is as a stark reminder that justice and protection for those who challenge criminal forces must be prioritized to prevent the nation from sinking further into impunity.