The wife of the former mayor of Iguala, the Mexican city where 43 students disappeared in September, has been charged with organized crime and conducting operations “with funds of illicit origin.”
María de los Ángeles Pineda is being held in a maximum-security prison until the start of her trial, al-Jazeera reports.
It is unclear whether the charges are related to the 43 missing students, who are presumed killed. However, prosecutors have named Pineda and her husband José Luis Abarca as “probable masterminds” of the kidnappings and linked Pineda to a local drug gang.
Authorities say the students went missing after their bus was attacked by police, on the orders of the then mayor.
According to investigators, members of the drug gang said police handed the students to them, after which they were killed and their corpses burned.
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Cybersecurity Experts Are Sounding the Alarm on DOGE
- Meet the 2025 Women of the Year
- The Harsh Truth About Disability Inclusion
- Why Do More Young Adults Have Cancer?
- Colman Domingo Leads With Radical Love
- How to Get Better at Doing Things Alone
- Michelle Zauner Stares Down the Darkness
Write to Helen Regan at helen.regan@timeasia.com