A 14-year-old boy has been arrested for the murder of 8 people in Mexico. The arrest of the teenager nicknamed 'El Chapito', or Little Chapo, was announced on 16 March 2023.
The boy has been accused of riding up in a motorcycle and opening fire on a family reportedly celebrating a birthday. The incident took place in January, and authorities have called it a drug gang-related crime.
The motive in the killings has not been made public, but drug gangs in Mexico frequently dabble in kidnapping and contract killing. They also kill rivals selling drugs on their territory, or people who who them money.
Mexico is no stranger to child killers.
In 2010, soldiers detained a 14-year-old boy nicknamed “El Ponchis.” The boy claimed he was kidnapped at the age of 11 and forced to work for the Cartel of the South Pacific, a branch of the splintered Beltran Leyva gang, and that he had participated in at least four decapitations.
After his arrest, the boy — who authorities identified only by his first name, Edgar — told reporters that he was drugged and threatened into committing the crimes.
(With agency inputs)
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