A murder mystery is unfolding in one of the world's most mysterious wildlife spots after two nature activists who worked at Mexico's El Rosario monarch butterfly sanctuary were discovered slain just days apart, authorities said.
The deaths of Homero Gomez Gonzalez, manager of the butterfly reserve, and Raul Hernandez Romero, a tour guide at the sanctuary, have sent shockwaves across the world of wildlife conservation.
Hernandez Romero's body was discovered on Saturday near the highest point of the mountainous sanctuary, which sits 9,000 feet above sea level in the state of Michoacan, about 130 miles west of Mexico City, according to a statement from the Michoacan state prosecutor's office. Hernandez Romero's family reported him missing on Friday, officials said.
"His body showed multiple bruises and a knife-type wound to the head," according to the statement.
The slaying came about three days after Hernandez Romero's body was found in a pond near the Central Mexico town of El Soldado, prosecutors said.
An autopsy performed in the presence of State Human Rights Commission representatives determined Gomez Gonzalez died from "mechanical asphyxiation" after suffering head trauma and being submerged in water, according to prosecutors.
2 murders linked to Mexico's famed monarch butterfly sanctuary
The slain conservationists worked for the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve.
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