Mexico: Relatives Dispute Gov't Version of Shootout Deaths

Serious questions are being raised concerning the death of 42 alleged members of the New Generation drug cartel who died in a shootout with Federal Police forces Friday morning in the central western Mexican state of Michoacan. Authorities say they were attacked by armed gunmen and that one policeman was killed, with authorities seizing an arsenal of weapons. Family members of the 42 deny that they were members of the drug cartel and charge that they were executed by federal police agents, basing their claim on an examination of photographic and forensic evidence. Police manipulating crime scenes and planting arms and evidence on suspects is a common practice in Mexico. The official version that only one officer was killed in the firefight following the attack by heavily armed gunmen has also led many observers to question the veracity of the account. Clayton Conn reports from Mexico City. teleSUR