Corruption sweep in Mexico's Michoacan unravels in the courts

Federal police stand guard in Apatzingan, in Mexico's Michoacan state. At least 11 people were confirmed killed in battles that began Wednesday, including five federal police officers and an 8-month-old. (Reuters / December 10, 2010)

An examination of the sealed case file shows prosecutors relied on evidence that didn't hold up under judicial scrutiny and on three anonymous paid informants whose testimony was largely hearsay.

By Ken Ellingwood and Tracy Wilkinson,
Los Angeles Times
December 12, 2010

Reporting from Mexico City and Morelia, Mexico

When 35 mayors, prosecutors, police chiefs and other officials in the state of Michoacan were hauled into jail and accused of taking bribes from a cartel last year, it looked as if the federal government was finally attacking the political collusion that has long nurtured the drug gangs.

But instead of heralding a bold new front in Mexican President Felipe Calderon's 4-year-old drug war, the case has turned out to be an embarrassing example of how that offensive is failing.

More than a year later, the prosecution is in ruins.

Judges ruled that the evidence was too flimsy, and all but one of the suspects has been freed. Many have returned to their old jobs, accusing the government of a politically motivated witch hunt during an election season.

(More here.)