Malcolm Shabazz Murder Case Update: 2 Men Arrested in Mexico City
*In Mexico City, two men have been arrested in connection with the murder of Malcolm Shabazz.
Shabazz, the grandson of civil rights-era icon Malcolm X ,who died Thursday. The suspects, who work at a bar Shabazz visited in Mexico City, could face charges of homicide and robbery, according to a report from the BBC.
As we reported, Shabazz had traveled to Mexico to meet with Miguel Suarez, formerly an organizer of RUMEC, a labor and construction group in California. Suarez had been deported to Mexico in April.
Apparently Shabazz found himself in the thick of trouble after he and Saurez allegedly visited a bar called The Palace Club, described by The Associated Press as being “in an area of rough dive bars tourists are warned against going to.”
“We were dancing with the girls and drinking,” Suarez said. Eventually, the pair were asked to pay a tab of more than $1,000.
“We pretty much got hassled,” Suarez told the AP. “A short dude came with a gun.”
After Shabazz and Suarez refused to pay, they were separated. The next time he saw Shabazz, Suarez says, he had been badly beaten. Shabazz later died in a hospital.
In addition to the two men arrested late Sunday, authorities are seeking three other suspects, according to Agence France Presse, citing the Mexican news site Reforma.
In a statement released Saturday, Malcolm Shabazz’s family thanked supporters for their help in coping with his loss.
“Although his bright light and boundless potential are gone from this life, we are grateful that he now rests in peace in the arms of his grandparents and the safety of God,” read in part. “We will miss him.”
