A journalist with the national newspaper Excelsior has been killed in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas, the state prosecutor’s office said Tuesday.
The body of Hector Gonzalez Antonio was found Tuesday morning in Ciudad Victoria, the capital of the state that shares a border with Texas. Authorities responded to call about a dumped body and only identified Gonzalez later. He was beaten to death, according to a statement from prosecutors.
As the correspondent for a national outlet, Gonzalez’s most recent stories reflected the violence and corruption present in Tamaulipas state. Prior to joining Excelsior, Gonzalez had worked for local newspapers in Ciudad Victoria.
More than 30 journalists have been killed in Mexico in the past 5 1/2 years.
On May 15, gunmen killed radio news host Juan Carlos Huerta in Tabasco state.
On May 24, Alicia Diaz Gonzalez, a business reporter with El Financiero, was found killed in her home in Monterrey in what authorities suspected was a domestic killing.
Gonzalez is the second journalist killed in Tamaulipas this year.
On Jan. 13, independent journalist Carlos Dominguez Rodriguez was stabbed to death in Nuevo Laredo. Six people were arrested in that case and the judicial process was ongoing.
Tamaulipas includes lucrative drug and human smuggling routes, which have made its violence difficult to control.