Mexican Cardinal, 5 Others Slain
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MEXICO CITY — A Roman Catholic cardinal was shot and killed in the Guadalajara airport Monday.
Cardinal Juan Jesus Posadas Ocampo, 66, and his driver died in what appeared to be a shootout between drug traffickers, the Excelsior news agency reported. Four other people also were killed, the independent agency said.
Posadas, the Archbishop of Guadalajara, was ordained in 1950 and elevated to cardinal by Pope John Paul II in June, 1991.
He was at the airport to receive the papal nuncio, who was visiting Guadalajara, reported the Spanish news agency EFE.
Armando Morquechu, a spokesman for the state of Jalisco, said little was known about the attack.
“It’s not known if it was an attack or something circumstantial,” Morquechu told the British news agency Reuters. “One theory is that the cardinal was a victim of a shootout between police and drug traffickers.”
Television reports here said one person had been detained by police.
Posadas was one of only two Mexican cardinals.
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