The Mexican Police

Jesus Alberto Capella Ibarra, 48, is the Secretary of Public Security in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, home to the Riviera Maya. After making his name fighting crime in his home city of Tijuana on the U.S. border, he was sent to the Yucatán Peninsula in fall 2018 and quickly made an enemy of the Riviera Maya gang. In February 2020, Florian Tudor, the leader of the gang, took out a double-page spread in a local newspaper accusing Capella of harassment, extortion, and abuse of his human rights. He also launched a series of complaints against police and officials. In an interview, Capella dismissed the accusations as “absurd,” and said he had evidence that the gang was being protected by police, legal officials, politicians, and the media.