Story By: Ana Lacasa, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
Video Credit: CEN
This is the shocking moment the kidnapped nephew of a popular singer is murdered in cold blood by gunmen armed with machine guns.
Smartphone footage shows Hugo Figueroa, the nephew of the late singer Joan Sebastian, stood against a tree shortly before being shot by gunmen near the town of Huaniqueo in western Mexico’s Michoacan state.
Mr Figueroa had been kidnapped by a gang of at least seven armed thugs at a rodeo at the La Aurora bullring in the nearby town of Tarimbaro. One of his bodyguards, named only as Alfonso, was killed by the kidnappers when he was seized.
Picture Credits: CEN & CEN/@hugofigueroaoficial
Mr Figueroa, who was a prominent businessman, can be heard asking: “What did I do? What did I do?”, before he is shot dead as he is standing against a tree with his hands tied behind his back.
One of the gunmen, who appears to be wielding an AK-47 machine gun, can be heard shouting a cryptic message saying: “From Juliantla, in the house of your mum, son of a b*tch, you hear that? With the people of this mountain, you cannot play, bro.”
It is unclear what this means but Juliantla, in the state of Guerrero, in south-western Mexico, was the hometown of Joan Sebastian who named one of his best-known songs after it.
Another man can be heard saying that he is about to learn a lesson, before shots ring out in a volley of fire after which Mr Figuero slumps to the ground.
His executioners carry on shooting for several seconds after he falls and it is clear they did not intend him to survive.
Police later confirmed to local media the man seen being shot in the video was Mr Figueroa, whose dead body was later found dumped by a roadside.
Prosecutors are scrutinising the clip as part of their investigation into the murder of the businessmen who owned a ranch renowned for breeding bulls for rodeo shows all over Mexico.
Joan Sebastian was also known as ‘El Rey del Jaripeo’ (the King of the Rodeo) for his love of the sport and his habit of performing on horseback.
The singer, who died off bone cancer in 2015, was a Mexican singer-songwriter whose seven Latin Grammy Awards and five Grammy Awards made him the most awarded Mexican performer in Grammy history.
