Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns the murder of journalist Luis Ángel López Valdez, killed on 11 June in Poza Rica, in the northern part of the state of Veracruz, on the very day that Mexico was inaugurating the 2026 FIFA World Cup. RSF is calling for an immediate investigation that treats his journalistic work as the primary line of inquiry, and for urgent measures to protect the press in one of the most dangerous states in the country. With his murder, the number of journalists killed in Poza Rica since the start of 2026 is now two, after the killing of Carlos Leonardo Ramírez Castro in January.
Luis Ángel López Valdez, 33, was a reporter for the daily newspaper Vanguardia de Veracruz and director of the digital outlet Reportaje Policiaco Veracruzano, which specialises in crime, security, and police affairs. The journalist was targeted by an armed group while driving his car in the early hours of 11 June.
The State Commission for the Protection and Support of Journalists (CEAPP) confirmed to RSF that López Valdez had been enrolled in the state protection scheme following the murder of his colleague Carlos Leonardo Ramírez Castro in January. According to the CEAPP, Luis Ángel López Valdez was receiving support and protection measures.
“As the football World Cup kicks off and millions of eyes turn to Mexico, one of the host countries, a journalist is murdered there. This crime, which comes on top of the murder of another journalist in the same city of Poza Rica earlier this year, and the recent abduction of journalist Roxana Guzmán, serves as a stark reminder that Mexico remains the most dangerous country in Latin America, if not the world, for the press. The authorities must act urgently to put an end to this cycle of impunity. We call for the murder of Luis Ángel López Valdez to be investigated with his journalistic work as the primary line of inquiry, for protection measures for journalists covering security issues in Veracruz to be strengthened, j,and for the safety of his loved ones to be guaranteed.
This crime comes just nine days after the disappearance of the journalist and media director Roxana Berenice Guzmán Ramírez, who ran the outlet Pulso Informativo del Sureste (“Southeast News Bulletin”), in Nanchital, also in Veracruz, a further sign of the persistent extreme violence against the press.
Mexico ranks 122nd out of 180 countries and territories in the World Press Freedom Index. In December 2025, RSF warned of the alarming rise in murders of journalists committed by organised crime.
