Mexico City, August 21 – The Mexico City Attorney General’s Office (FGJCDMX) offered a public apology to journalist Humberto Padgett León on Friday, August 21, acknowledging its responsibility for not protecting his personal data and omitting specialized protocols in the investigations of an assault he suffered in 2017. The incident occurred while Padgett was conducting a report on drug dealing at Ciudad Universitaria (UNAM).
Public Apology Issued Eight Years After the Incident
The apology took place at the Digna Ochoa Hall of the Human Rights Commission of Mexico City (CDHCM), eight years after the events. Padgett, who is currently battling severe cancer, was present at the ceremony with his wife.
Omar Gutiérrez Lozano, General Coordinator of Legal and Human Rights for the FGJCDMX, admitted that the institution allowed information that should have remained confidential to reach the hands of those who had assaulted the journalist. "We made a mistake when we did not adequately protect your personal data," Gutiérrez Lozano stated. He added, "We also made a mistake when we did not understand that an aggression against a journalist demands a specialized, immediate, and professional response."
This public apology is in compliance with Recommendation 19/2019 of the CDHCM, issued on December 4, 2019.
Robbery Case and Systemic Failures
The robbery against the journalist resulted in a conviction against five individuals on December 6, 2018, who received a sentence of four years, six months, and 22 days in prison for aggravated robbery committed with moral violence.
Gutiérrez Lozano emphasized the severity of the institutional failure: "The protection of that information was not an accessory aspect of this investigation; it was an obligation of the Prosecutor’s Office and an indispensable condition to protect his rights." He described the institutional action as "a serious and inadmissible failure."
The official also noted that the CDHCM had documented similar patterns in previous recommendations, specifically 8/2014 and 4/2017. These three instruments, when analyzed together, reveal systematic deficiencies in how the institution investigated crimes committed against journalists.
"No line of investigation linked to journalistic work should be ruled out in advance," said Gutiérrez Lozano. He further stated that no journalist should face an investigation that ignores the risks of their profession and called for the eradication of the improper practices to which Padgett and his family were subjected.
Ongoing Investigation and Padgett’s Concerns
Despite the public apology, the case is not closed. The Mexico City Prosecutor’s Office stated that it maintains an open investigation to determine the possible responsibility of public servants involved in the leaking of the journalist’s personal data. To date, no official has been sanctioned.
María Dolores González Saravia, president of the CDHCM, acknowledged the progress but clarified its scope: "Assuming institutional responsibility does not mean attributing personal responsibilities to those who are part of an institution today for acts that occurred years ago. It means taking charge of what is appropriate."
Three days before the event, on August 18, Padgett posted a message on X (formerly Twitter) addressed to President Claudia Sheinbaum, anticipating the limited scope of the apology. "Next Friday, your Political System will barely acknowledge responsibility and offer apologies, but it will leave unpunished the officials who handed over all our data to the drug dealers who threatened us with death," he wrote.
The journalist also revealed that he has severe cancer and fears he may not live to see the end of the legal process. "It is very likely that I will not see the end due to the severity of the cancer I suffer from," he wrote.
The case has direct precedents involving the Prosecutor’s Office itself. In June 2024, when Padgett went to its facilities to request the investigation file regarding the leaking of his data, he was detained and brought before a civic judge. The institution alleged that the journalist engaged in "verbal aggressions and threats" against a public prosecutor. Padgett denied this and documented the detention on video from inside the facilities.
Source: https://www.infobae.com/mexico/2026/08/22/fiscalia-cdmx-se-disculpa-con-el-periodista-humberto-padgett-filtro-sus-datos-y-omitio-protocolos-al-investigar-robo-que-sufrio-en-cu/
