Cruz Irving Martínez Flores (21) traveled 171 kilometers from Ometepec (state of Guerrero) to Chacahua, a paradisiacal Mexican island surrounded by lagoons and the Pacific Ocean, in the municipality of Villa Tututepec, state of Oaxaca. He had already been there a month before. According to local authorities, "looking for work".
The young man arrived last Thursday in the same boat as the group of Argentines who, the next day, after four in the afternoon, would end up attacking with machetes, in an event as brutal as inexplicable. On the way, he told them he was a surf instructor and even offered to help them if they needed it.
"This person was on the boat, he arrived with other people, but they did not see him anymore and then the next day, when they went to eat at the restaurant, they saw him again," reconstructs Carina González (50), the mother of Macarena Elía González (29), one of the victims of the aggression.
Benjamin and James.
The Necochense girl was with her boyfriend, the Cordovan Santiago Lastra (22), and the childhood friend of the latter, Benjamin Gamond (23), who had been teammates at the Tala Rugby Club.
In this place they met again with Martínez Flores. Benjamin said to him, "We find you again, what a barbarian! Can you tell me where we can buy surfboards?" But the young Mexican was elusive, with a strange attitude.
Santiago, Benjamín and Macarena, the Argentines attacked in Mexico. (Photo: Instagram @benjagamond)
"When they finished eating, this person was inside the place. Benja stopped to pay the bill and while he was leaving, this person was coming after him, they had not seen the machete, obviously, so he yelled at him and when he turned around, he hit him with the machete and attacked him three times, "adds González in dialogue with Clarín.
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They sent you so," the aggressor repeated, among other things, to Benjamín, who tried to defend himself as best he could from the criminal fury of Martínez Flores.
The Cordovan Santiago Lastra (22) and his girlfriend, the Necochense Macarena Elía González (29), attacked with machetes on a beach in Mexico.
"My daughter threw herself to defend him on him, she received the big blow in the back and the boyfriend wanted to defend them, he broke a chair in her head, but the guy followed him and hit him with the machete, he reached to put his hand so he broke his wrist, but he was also straight to the head, " says Macarena's mother.
Those who witnessed the scene were terrified. They were shocked and – those who could – reacted to help them.
According to the community president of Villa Tututepec, Jesuhandy Conde Gómez, the aggressor took the machete, a common work tool in the area, from a place where coconuts were stored, which was visible.
"This person has psychiatric problems and ingested toxic substances," he said. In addition, he maintained that he suffers from "schizophrenia" or a similar pathology, since "a month ago he visited the place, the community, and it was noticeable that when someone spoke to him, he immediately became hysterical."
Three Argentines were attacked with machetes in Mexico. Photo: Twitter @azucenau
"We came to that conclusion at first glance, he was a person who you could not comment on anything because he was very aggressive," he told Radio Universidad de Córdoba.
In addition, he indicated that "some say he sought work as a masonry, others say as a waiter's assistant."
"We have never had a case like this. Here young people and families try to receive our tourists in a very friendly way, "said Conde Gómez.
In a statement, the government of Villa de Tututepec said that "the aggressor, named Cruz Irving Martínez Flores, 21, is originally from Ometepec, Guerrero, and arrived in this municipality in search of employment so he has no relationship with the community."
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After the intervention of the Municipal Preventive Police, the aggressor, Cruz Irving Martínez Flores, was consigned to the Regional Deputy Prosecutor's Office of the Coast, where the High Impact Crimes Table will be responsible for defining his legal situation, "he said.
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We ask the Prosecutor's Office of the State of Oaxaca to carry out its work in a professional manner and comply with the corresponding procedure that allows sanctioning the aggression suffered by the three Argentine tourists, for which we are in the best disposition to collaborate as appropriate, "he concluded.
According to judicial sources, the attacker was ordered preventive detention and the case will be reclassified as "qualified homicide and injuries."
Sources from the Argentine embassy in Mexico, in charge of Carlos Tomada, reported Tuesday that Benjamin's relatives "are making arrangements to donate the organs," which "is not easy because the body is part of the investigation."
"The Argentine Consulate accompanies the relatives as from the beginning. Those efforts continue today," they added.
The emotional message of the brother of the Argentine killed with machetes in Mexico: "Thank you for waiting for me, fly very high Torito." Photo: Instagram
Gamond had been transferred late Sunday in a Navy ambulance plane to the General Hospital in the Mexican capital, where he died.
The young man received serious head injuries. The couple suffered sharp injuries to the hands, arms and back, as well as a fracture in a hand in the case of Santiago, so they were treated at the Angel del Mar Hospital in Puerto Escondido.
The idea is that this weekend they will travel back to the province of Córdoba, where their families are already preparing for hugs amid the sadness of Benjamín's death.
EMJ
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