A Mexican mother involved in searching for the missing was found murdered in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, on Friday, the same day President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo began a tour of the state, authorities confirmed.
Rubí Patricia Gómez-Tagle, a member of the Corazones Unidos por una Misma Causa collective, was discovered dead inside a residence in the Jabalíes neighborhood, near the Luis Donaldo Colosio Murrieta bypass, where Sheinbaum had held a morning press conference, according to reports in local media.
The Sinaloa Prosecutor General’s Office reported the discovery on February 27, 2026, stating that investigative police and forensic personnel were processing the scene. Preliminary findings indicate Gómez-Tagle sustained injuries consistent with a sharp instrument, the office said in a statement.
Sheinbaum Pardo briefly addressed the homicide while in San Ignacio, Sinaloa, stating, “The prosecutor’s office is investigating,” according to reports from Jornada.
Gómez-Tagle’s death has drawn condemnation from search collectives across Mexico. The Sabuesos Guerreras collective released a statement calling the murder a “challenge” to the state and a “slap in the face” to national security, adding that the killing “is a message of absolute impunity from the perpetrators.”
According to reports, Gómez-Tagle was found by members of her collective after she failed to respond to phone calls. Authorities stated the victim had multiple wounds. The Fiscalía General del Estado (FGE) initiated an investigation, examining the scene on Avenida Santa Rosa in the Infonavit Jabalíes area.
Corazones Unidos por una Misma Causa, the collective to which Gómez-Tagle belonged, expressed their grief, noting she continued searching for her own missing son. “A fighting mother does not die, her love remains in the struggle,” the collective stated in a public message.
The murder underscores the dangers faced by family members searching for Mexico’s more than 133,000 missing persons, according to official records. Collectives like Corazones Unidos play a critical role in locating missing individuals and supporting families in their search for truth, and justice.