A state lawmaker introduced a bill that, if enacted, would create a new Arthropod Illness Transmission Control and Prevention State Council.
The goal of the proposed agency would be to develop strategies and programs to monitor sicknesses like rocky mountain fever, which has killed over 100 residents statewide since 2009.
Assemblyman Fausto Gallardo, a Tijuana member of the Mexican Green Party, said ticks, mosquitos and other insects transmit illnesses like zika, rickettsia, Chikungunya and dengue.
He said even though authorities have launched a series of campaigns to address the issue, the results obtained so far are not satisfactory.
Last year, the state reported 67 confirmed rocky mountain fever cases, of which 21 resulted in fatalities, with 20 of them in Mexicali.
According the public health figures, 35 percent of Mexicali’s dogs are infested with rickettsia-ill ticks.
Also in 2015, the state reported 25 Chikungunya cases and 255 dengue cases, especially in Mexicali, Ensenada and Tijuana, most of them outside the state.
Alleged sexual offender arrested
A 51-year-old man who allegedly committed a rape against his teenager neighbor was arrested by state Ministerial police officers at Fraccionamiento Hacienda Dorada in southern Mexicali, said the Attorney General’s office.
Assistant Attorney General in Mexicali Fernando Ramírez said police agents arrested Gilberto “Doe” as a suspect of rape against a minor reported on Feb. 17 in a residence located at Fraccionamiento Valle de Puebla in southeastern Mexicali.
A lawsuit was filed against the suspect with the Sexual Liberty and Family Investigative Unit by the victim’s relatives.
Ramírez said the victim told her mother her neighbor deceived the girl and invited her to his house.
When the minor attempted to leave, the suspect presumably took her by the arm and sexually attacked her.
Police officers requested an arrest warrant to a judge.
The suspect was booked in Mexicali Jail.
Man indicted for vehicular manslaughter
A man who ran over another male while being chased by the police and driving under the influence was indicted at state court, said the Attorney General’s office.
In a press release, authorities said Christian Jyonany “Doe,” 25, was indicted for the death on July 5 of an unidentified 24-year-old man.
Prosecutors pressed charges against the suspect for vehicular manslaughter, property damage and driving against the influence, authorities said.
According to the police the suspect was driving a 2004 Ford Explorer with California plates above the minimum speed level when ran over the victim who died while receiving medical assistance.
The suspect fled scene and was chased by Mexicali police officers.
The suspect increased the speed and crashed against a parked vehicle and a residence fence.
The driver attempted to flee again by robbing a bicycle to a teenager, but was eventually found and arrested at Colonia Valle del Álamo.
The judge decided the suspect will remain in Mexicali Jail for the rest of the trial and gave detectives three months to close the investigation.
Unemployment rate reaches historic low
Baja California’s unemployment rate reached 2.48 percent in May, said the National Institute of Statistics and Geography, or INEGI in Spanish.
The Mexican agency said the state’s rate was lower than the 4.5 percent reported on May 2015.
State Secretary of Economic Development Carlo Bonfante said the rate is the lowest among the northern border states and the fourth lowest nationwide.
The rate is also the lowest since April 2008 and has reported consecutive decreases for 22 months, he added.
During the first five months of 2016 businesses have created 30,825 new jobs, which represent 8.2 percent of jobs created nationwide during the year.
Job creation has positively impacted other industries like manufacturing, trade and tourism, Bonfante said.
However, the secretary warned the actual labor market conditions are impacting businesses, which now have to work harder in employment retention by increasing training and improving working conditions.
Bonfante said in the mid-term job creation will translate into salary increases.
