Aguirre Formally Linked to Trial for Forced Disappearance; Families Demand Life in Prison

After a hearing lasting nearly 14 hours, a federal control judge at Altiplano formally linked Ángel Aguirre Rivero to trial (vinculación a proceso) for forced disappearance of persons and crimes against the administration of justice, rejecting defense arguments that he was absent from Guerrero when the events occurred as 'not objective nor sufficient.' The judge granted four months for supplementary investigation. Tlachinollan called the ruling 'a drop of hope in a sea of mysteries' but warned the case must not be limited to state and municipal officials and must continue toward federal authorities, including the Army. Family spokesperson Melitón Ortega García said families had suffered nearly 12 years awaiting answers, and Cristina Bautista Salvador, mother of disappeared student Benjamín Ascencio Bautista, demanded the judge ensure 'Aguirre remains imprisoned for the rest of his life.' Families also cautioned the FGR against 'acts of simulation.'