MONTERREY (EFE).— Relatives of the victims of the attack on the Casino Royale, which took place on August 25, 2011 and left 52 people dead in the state of Nuevo Leon, will inaugurate a memorial in memory of the victims of the most serious attack on the civilian population of Mexico by organized crime.
On the evening of August 25, 2011, members of the criminal group Los Zetas doused the entrance to a betting shop in Monterrey with gasoline and then set it on fire in retaliation for the business owner’s refusal to pay a weekly fee to the criminal organization.
The death toll was 52, including two pregnant women.
Samara Pérez Muñiz, a spokesperson for the mourners, mentioned yesterday in an interview with EFE that within the framework of the 13th anniversary of the tragedy they have planned a ceremony in memory of the victims, as well as the inauguration of the memorial that was worked on in conjunction with the municipal government of Monterrey.
“We hope that the memorial will be finished by then, and we can pay some kind of tribute to our relatives,” he said.
He explained that when they receive this memorial, they will remove the 52 crosses that they placed in memory of their loved ones and which they have preserved on the site despite the passing of the years.
The memorial is the second to be built, as the first one called “Your Life” was removed because it did not satisfy the families of the victims. The project, considered a waterfall-wall, was inaugurated in August 2014.
“We worked hard on this (memorial), we looked at the proposals of the architect who is working for the municipality of Monterrey, the directors of arts and Public Works. Then they presented us with several designs and the families approved them,” he explained.
He said that this new project aims to send a message that violent events like this can happen and that they do not want such a story to happen again.
“No one should experience a loss as great as the one we experienced,” said Samara Pérez, who was at the Casino Royale on the day of the incident with her son Brad Xavier Muraira Pérez, who unfortunately did not survive the attack.
The work, seven metres wide by three metres high, will bear the names of the 52 victims and a legend that alludes to the lack of justice in the case, both for the deceased and for their families.
Thirteen years after the attack, Samara Pérez said that only three sentences have been handed down for the 36 people charged with the incident.
At the federal level, 20 people were investigated and at the state level, 16.
“As for the people who have been accused of these atrocious acts, we are still the same, unfortunately, they are still protected by everything, that seems like a joke because it turns out that now they are even protecting themselves against changes in their criminal record and things like that,” shared the spokesperson for the relatives.
At a glance
Sentenced
Those sentenced for the attack on the Casino Royale betting house, so far, are: Julio Tadeo Berrones Ramírez, alias “Julio El Rayas” or “Rayas”, who received a sentence of 100 years; Juan Ángel Leal Flores, alias “El Casillas” or “Cash”, sentenced to 75 years in prison, and Tomás Barbosa Sánchez, alias “El Tommy”, who faces a conviction, appealed, also of 75 years in prison.
Charges they face
The sentences handed down are for qualified homicide, against 52 people, criminal association, and the concept of reparation for damages.
Fateful date
The attack took place on the evening of August 25, 2011.
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2024-08-23 06:45:05
