| | |  News Around the Republic of Mexico 
Mexico's Organized-Crime Squad Investigates Canadians
 Catherine Solyom - Montreal Gazette
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January 08, 2010
Five Canadians detained in Mexico on New Year’s Eve are being investigated by Mexico’s organized crime branch, according to EFE, a Spanish-language news agency.
They are Eduardo Larenas, Daniel Jean, Eric Brochu, Daniele Ciampelletti and Martín Giguère.
The five men were initially detained in Puerto Vallarta by municipal police along with seven Mexicans after a shooting erupted in a popular nightclub. But the detainees were then transferred to the military police.
According to Canada’s Foreign Affairs ministry, consular officials continue to press for answers as to why the five men were held for four days before the embassy was notified. They have expressed concern to their Mexican counterparts about the mistreatment of the men in detention. The ministry refused yesterday to confirm the identities of those detained, however, or provide any further information.
According to EFE, the men are in the custody of the SIEDO, Mexico’s anti-organized crime unit. They were stopped in the state of Jalisco, where the Sinaloa drug cartel is known to operate. But a spokesperson for the Mexican attorney-general’s office, Viviana Macias Vences, specified that the Canadians have not been formally arrested and are instead “in protective custody.” She couldn’t say under what conditions the Canadians are being held.
Five Quebecers Arrested in Mexico
Catherine Solyom - Canwest News
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January 07, 2010
Montreal - Five Quebecers arrested in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico on New Year's Eve remain behind bars somewhere outside Mexico City, but it is still unclear why they were detained and handed over to military police.
A spokesperson for Foreign Affairs would not release the names of the five men, but did say that Canadian consular officials in Mexico City are now in contact with them and their families in Canada, and have been to visit the detainees twice since their arrest.
The Foreign Affairs department has also contacted its Mexican counterpart, to address allegations of mistreatment and the delay by Mexican authorities in informing the Canadian embassy of the arrests. The detainees were not allowed to make any phone calls until Jan. 4, five days after their arrests.
"At the request of the minister (Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon), a diplomatic note was sent to the Mexican Foreign Ministry to underscore the Government of Canada's concern with late consular notification and the allegations of mistreatment," said press secretary Natalie Sarafian in a statement.
No one contacted in Mexico could confirm whether or not the arrests were connected to a shooting inside the Mandala, a popular night club in Puerto Vallarta around 6 a.m. Dec. 31, where one police officer was shot in the head.
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