In February of this year (2012) American citizen Yvonne Saucedo was murdered. She lived in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, and worked for Arizona School of English as a teacher. In January she was kidnapped along with her mother. Investigations are ongoing but as to now the true reason of why she was kidnapped and subsequently murdered with her mother is still unknown.

Kidnapping, extortion and violent crime have become commonplace in Sinaloa since the war on drugs. Over 50,000 people have been murdered in Mexico since 2006 and many cities in the state are no longer safe, which includes the tourist resort of Mazatlan. Please check out the most recent advice given on the State Department website:-

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_5665.html

CIAndy