Bystanders, outraged by Stanley's murder, huddle around the crime scene RELATED VIDEO CNN's Harris Whitbeck is in Mexico City Windows Media 28K 80K

June 8, 1999
Web posted at: 2:25 p.m. EDT (1825 GMT)

In this story: Attack puts government on defensive Crime has soared since '94 economic crisis Officials cite 'professionalism' of murder RELATED STORIES, SITES

MEXICO CITY (CNN) -- The brazen daylight shooting of a Mexican television star has ignited widespread outrage over authorities' failure to stop a crime wave that has shaken all levels of society in the capital.

The front pages of Mexico City newspapers were plastered Tuesday with the news of the gangland-style slaying of Francisco "Paco" Stanley and the government's defensive reaction to the uproar that ensued.

Stanley was gunned down Monday morning along a busy Mexico City freeway. His attackers fired at least 24 bullets into his black Lincoln minivan, hitting the TV star seven times.

A passenger in the minivan, entertainment reporter Jorge Gil, was wounded while the chauffeur escaped unharmed. One bystander was killed and two others were wounded.

Stanley, 56, was the host of a morning variety program, "Una Tras Otra" or "One After Another," which was seen by millions of viewers each weekday morning on the TV Azteca network.

Hundreds of fans gathered late Monday outside the funeral home where Stanley's body lay, many shouting "Ya basta," or "Enough," in condemnation of rampant crime.

Mexico's most well-known celebrities and politicians expressed indignation over the slaying, which comes on the heels of other high-profile incidents.

Attack puts government on defensive

In an address on his network late Monday, TV Azteca president Ricardo Salinas Pliego railed against the violence that has forced Mexico's wealthy to hire bodyguards and left even the poor vulnerable to kidnappings.

"Today it touched Paco. Tomorrow it could touch you or me or anyone," Salinas Pliego said. "The impunity, the ineptitude of the authorities and the indifference of citizens has reached a limit. Today we cry for Paco. Tomorrow who will we cry for?"

The government of Mexico City Mayor Cuauhtemoc Cardenas, who was elected in 1997 on a platform that highlighted a vow to crack down on crime, reacted defensively.

"It doesn't work to try and use the problem of insecurity to undercut the reputation of the current administration," Secretary of Public Security Alejandro Gertz said, complaining that Cardenas had inherited the high crime rate from previous administrations.

Critics were unmoved by that posture.

"Who will it be next?" TV Azteca anchor Rosa Maria de Castro said after going to the scene of the killing. "The citizens of Mexico have the right to be protected by the government from these crimes."

Crime has soared since '94 economic crisis

Stanley was a popular personality for TV Azteca

Since a botched devaluation of the peso currency in December 1994 plunged Mexico into prolonged economic crisis, crime has soared as poverty and unemployment have spread.

In Mexico City, a metropolis of 18 million people, an average of 700 crimes involving weapons are committed every day, resulting in an average of six deaths a day, according to police statistics. While that is almost double the average the city had when the economic crisis began, analysts believe the actual figures are even higher.

Cardenas, a likely candidate for the 2000 presidential elections, tapped Gertz as the city's police chief last year after his initial choice made little progress against the crime problem.

Mexico's best known television anchor, Jacobo Zabludovsky, called for action as he reported on the attack for the Televisa network. "Someone should resign and make way for people who have the capacity to protect us," he said.

Officials cite 'professionalism' of murder

Eyewitnesses told police that Stanley was attacked by as many as four gunmen as his car was driving away from a restaurant in southern Mexico City, where the TV star had gone after doing his daily show.

Officials ruled out the possibility that the Stanley murder resulted from a robbery or kidnapping attempt gone sour.

The attack "was an operation aimed at taking Mr. Stanley's life," Mexico City Attorney General Samuel del Villar said, adding that the nature of the attack "shows the professionalism of the killers."

Police released a sketch of one suspect Monday night but did not announce any arrests.

ÁBienvenidos a TV Azteca!

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.