Police chief murdered in Mexico’s Sinaloa state

MEXICO CITY — The police chief in Mexico’s Sinaloa state was murdered on Monday while driving on a highway in the region, home to one of the country’s most powerful drug cartels, authorities said.

Joel Ernesto Soto, director of the Sinaloa state police, was killed “in a cowardly attack,” the region’s public security chief Cristobal Castaneda said on Twitter.

Soto was killed while returning alone to the state capital Culiacan after spending several days with his family.

His murder comes after the Sinaloa state police launched operations against gang members earlier this month, seizing weapons and tactical equipment.

Sinaloa is the stronghold of notorious narco kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s cartel, and one of the Mexican states most affected by drug-related violence.

More than 300,000 people have been murdered in Mexico since the government deployed the military to fight drug trafficking in 2006, according to authorities, who blame most of the killings on gang violence.