Driving along Vía Atlixcáyotl—Puebla, Mexico’s main avenue—had become a risky endeavor. Every so often, Rafael Zabalza, a 65-year-old Spanish pharmacist, would appear in an SUV to fire randomly at passing drivers. Over the course of three months, he attacked at least 11 motorists and one motorcyclist at various points in Angelópolis—the city’s most exclusive district—instilling terror among the local population. Early Tuesday morning, the Prosecutor’s Office identified and located him; he greeted officers with gunfire at one of his properties. He was arrested, and an arsenal of weapons was seized.
According to the Prosecutor’s Office, Zabalza would leave his home in the Santa Fe area armed, get into a white GMC Denali SUV with no license plates, and drive to various points along Vía Atlixcáyotl to attack drivers. The attacks occurred at different times and locations along the avenue with no discernible pattern, complicating the investigation for weeks.
The first attacks took place in April, but for several weeks, victims did not file formal complaints; the Prosecutor’s Office only learned of the incidents through social media, where videos of cars struck by bullets were circulating. Residents began warning of a suspected sniper, and fear spread rapidly.
José Luis Hernández González, the Metropolitan Investigation Prosecutor, explained that it was not until June that a young man wounded by gunfire came forward to file a complaint. Since then, 10 case files have been opened: one for attempted homicide and the others for property damage and dangerous attacks. Two other individuals did not file complaints. “We thought these were isolated incidents, but when we conducted reconstructions and technical-scientific investigations, we noticed commonalities,” Hernández said during the presentation of the case on Tuesday.
Using information from the cases, the Prosecutor’s Office mapped out a “criminal zone” and reviewed footage from private security cameras as well as the C5 surveillance system. Among the tools used was “El Faro,” a 3D technology that made it possible to trace bullet trajectories and calculate shooting distances.
Some victims also managed to identify the alleged attacker. State Attorney General Idamis Pastor and State Public Safety Secretary Francisco Sánchez González noted that identifying the businessman was possible “thanks to the analysis of behavioral patterns and the tracking of an unplated pickup truck that appeared repeatedly in the various attacks.”
Sánchez acknowledged that it was a “tough, complicated task” because anonymity and the element of surprise played a major role, given that the individual “had no defined pattern, nor a fixed route or schedule.” Authorities maintain that the attacks “caused terror and panic” among the population. “Thank God, there is only one injured person,” he said.
