The head of Baja California Sur’s National Action Party (PAN) is asking Governor Víctor Castro to put numbers where his mouth is. In the latest round of a brewing public transparency fight, state PAN chief Rigo Mares called on the governor to publish verifiable homicide statistics instead of dismissing critics with political attacks.
The dispute began when federal Senator Ricardo Anaya, also of the PAN, questioned inconsistencies in how homicides are being counted and reported in Baja California Sur. Castro’s response was not a spreadsheet—it was a political broadside aimed at Anaya and the PAN.
Mares, in turn, said the debate should not be about party loyalty. It should be about knowing exactly how victims are being classified and counted. For residents and visitors who follow crime trends in the state, the answer matters.
What the State Has Said So Far
According to the state attorney general’s office, 172 cases were recorded under a questioned category between January and August 2026, along with 39 intentional homicides during the same period. But Mares pointed out that the public has not seen a breakdown of those figures by crime type, municipality, month, victim count or circumstances of death.
He also raised a question familiar to anyone following public-safety debates in Baja Sur: how are missing persons who are later found dead being counted, and under which category do they appear in the official statistics?
Why It Matters to the Public
For expats, property owners and anyone considering a move to or investment in Baja California Sur, crime statistics are not academic. They are part of the decision-making process. Transparent, verifiable data allows people to assess risk honestly. Opaque or inconsistent reporting does the opposite.
“If the figures are correct, they should be made available to the public so they can be reviewed and verified,” Mares said. He called on the state government to publish the methodology it uses to compile and report crime statistics to the National Public Security System.
In Baja, a good-news story is never just a press release. It is data that can be checked, a timeline that holds up and a methodology that survives scrutiny. For now, Mares and the PAN are waiting to see which version Castro prefers to offer.
Source Note: This story is based on original reporting by Colectivo Pericú. It has been independently rewritten and adapted by the Gringo Gazette for our English-speaking readers, with additional context where appropriate.
