Mexico: Acapulco Police Department Expelled, 700 Cops Disarmed

Mexico's coastal city of Acapulco in Guerrero is now to be patrolled by state police and military forces as the entire city's police department has been dismantled amid investigations over suspicions of drug trafficking gang infiltrations.

RELATED:
It's Not Two, There Are More Than 12 'Mobile Morgues' In Mexico

Three high-ranking officers have been detained, two of them over murder charges and the other one due to possession of unauthorized weapons. The rest of the force has been dismantled as authorities believe drug trafficking cartels have infiltrated the city police.

The federal forces and the army have disarmed over 700 city police agents, all of whom will be evaluated and expected to pass control and trust tests.

Disgraced former officers Luis Fernando "N", known as "El Felix," who served as commander of the Preventive Police and Brayan Antonio, called "El Brayan," who served as the office manager of the Mobility and Transport Coordination have both been arrested for murder.

On the charge of possession of unauthorized weapons, director of the highway police, Rafael Rivas, was apprehended.

Guerrero state, where Acapulco is, has become one of the most violent in the country. The cultivation of poppy, used to make heroin, contributes significantly to drug-trafficking violence. The rate of murders in Acapulco is one of the highest in the country, with 103 killed per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the BBC.