Mexico City Officer Charged in University Shooting
Mexico City government charged a police officer whose involvement in a shooting at Ciudad Universitaria wounded a college student Saturday.
Officer Luis Javier Aguinaga Saavedra will face abuse of authority and other charges for using his firearm during Saturday's incident.
Officials said the shooting took place on the main campus of National Autonomous University of Mexico near the School of Philosophy.
The shooting comes at a time were tensions between police and students in Mexico are high. Just two months ago, 43 students from Guerrero state went missing, sparking national protests to recover the truth about their disappearance.
Federal District Government Secretary Hector Serrano said officer Aguinaga Saavedra disregarded his strict duty to exercise care in using force, regardless of the fact that he was following an order form the prosecutor's office.
Serrano also said that the director of the Mexico City police department's southern zone has been removed from his post while investigations on what really happened during the shooting are ongoing.
Reports say that the officers including Aguinaga Saavedra were attacked by students when they were sent to investigate about a stolen cell phone.
Witnesses say that the officer fired his weapon after a group of people were seen taking pictures of the incident and asking what was going on.
Back in September, Iguala municipal police officers opened fire on a group of students from a rural teachers college. Following the incident, Iguala Mayor Jose Luis Abarca Velazquez and his wife, Maria de los Angeles Pineda Villa were arrested by the Federal Police for the incident.
As a result, six people died, 25 were wounded and 43 students disappeared.
Federal Judiciary Council stated that Abarca will be tried on organized crime, kidnapping and murder charges. Pineda is being held in preventive detention so prosecutors can gather more evidence in the case.
A national strike will begin Thursday with efforts in finding the missing students.
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