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Body found of woman who went missing after taking Didi ride in Mexico

  • Paola Banuelos’ death has reverberated in Mexico, where at least two women are killed in gender-related violence every day

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Protesters demand justice for Paola Banuelos during a march in Mexico on July 11. Photo: Reuters

Authorities found the body of a 23-year-old woman who went missing in northern Mexico days after she used the ride-hailing app Didi, a case that has sparked outrage in the Latin American country where gender violence is prevalent.

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Education student Paola Banuelos had not been seen since getting into a car hailed via the Chinese app early Monday after leaving a bar in the city of Mexicali on the US-Mexico border, across from Calexico, California.

On Thursday, her body was found in a remote area showing signs of violence, according to a statement from the local state prosecutor.

Sergio Gutierrez, the driver of the Didi car and the main suspect in the suspected murder, has turned himself in, the statement added.

Gutierrez told local media he had fled “out of fear” and that he and his family had been threatened.

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“People don’t really know what happened, they have ideas, they send threats,” he told local journalists before turning himself in.

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