Jovany “La Muñeca” captured for murder of Clara Brugada’s aides

Federal and Mexico City security agencies detained Jovany Santa Cruz Molina, known as “La Muñeca”, in the municipality of Yautepec, Morelos. He is suspected of belonging to the criminal cell that carried out the May 2025 double homicide of Ximena Guzmán Cuevas and José Muñoz Vega, close collaborators of Mexico City Governor Clara Brugada.

The operation was coordinated by the Secretariat of Security and Protection of Citizens (SSPC) together with the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, the National Intelligence Center and other authorities. During the arrest agents seized a short‑firearm, a digital weighing scale and a bag of alleged narcotics. The suspect was placed before a federal judge and handed over to the Ministry of Public Prosecutor. Investigators say the cell operated in the Gustavo A. Madero borough of Mexico City and the State of Mexico, and that internal disputes within the group may have triggered the killings. The case remains under active investigation.