Cruz Irving Martinez Flores was identified as the aggressor of the three Argentines who received machete blows in the Chacahua Lagoons in Villa de Tututepec in Oaxaca. Last Friday, a man from the state of Guerrero surprised the surfers after they finished eating at a local restaurant. After being cut with the machete, one of the tourists, Benjamin Gamond, lost his life.
After the attack, Cruz Living Martinez was immediately arrested, and according to the Oaxaca State Prosecutor’s Office, he was being investigated for assault and attempted murder until one of the surfers died.
“The people who were in the place secured the probable responsible, and later the municipal authorities channeled him to the Regional Deputy Prosecutor’s Office of the Coast, based in Puerto Escondido, where he is in the quality of presented, waiting for the judge to resolve his legal situation,” said the Prosecutor’s Office.
Who is Cruz Irving Martinez Flores?
Benjamín was 23 years old and was originally from Córdoba, Argentina. He first came to the country as a tourist and was so amazed by the Mexican beaches that he got a job in Tulum, Quintana Roo. Last week he decided to visit the waters of Oaxaca and was accompanied by his friend Santiago Lastra, 22 years old, and his girlfriend Macarena González, 29 years old, also from Argentina.
On Thursday, Cruz Irving approached the Argentines to introduce himself as a surf instructor. “They talked like with anyone else, but then they didn’t see him again. When they arrived at the island, he told them that he was from there and that if they needed him, he would go along the coast,” reported Macarena’s mother, Carina González, to the Argentine media Necochea Digital.
The next day, Benjamín saw Cruz Irving and approached him to ask him if he knew where they sold surfboards, but at that moment, “the guy looked at them as if he didn’t know them, as if he was out of place. Benja commented that he had spoken to him strangely as if he didn’t know him,” said Carina. Moments later, Guerrero attacked the tourists.
In this regard, the municipal president of Villa de Tututepec, Jesuhandy Conde Gomez, pointed out that Cruz Irving is not a resident but a native of Guerrero and had come to the municipality to find work. He added that the 21-year-old man “suffers from psychological problems” and had consumed “toxic substances” before attacking, said in an interview with ElDoce.tv.
“Out of nowhere he became very aggressive… They talked for about 10 minutes and then the young man returned with shoving and so on”: Jesuhandy Conde.
The mayor of Villa de Tututepec indicated that they would support the families of those affected. “This community, this paradise called Lagunas de Chacahua, is a 100 percent noble place. The people are not a problem, and they receive a lot of tourists,” he said and emphasized:
“Unfortunately a person came from another place to cause us this big problem. He is already in the due process that we are requesting so that this does not go unpunished”.
Jesuhandy Conde said Cruz Irving had an epileptic attack: “He became very aggressive. The first thing he had was a knife, a machete. The kids were having breakfast. They had been there for three days. The aggressor had only arrived one day earlier to ask for work,” said the municipal president.
A judge in Oaxaca granted Cruz Irving pre-trial detention. The Oaxaca Prosecutor’s Office indicated that it would request before the judge the reclassification of the crime of attempted homicide to aggravated homicide.