Salinas de Gortari scandal started? In recent weeks, Mexicans were glued to their televisions to watch a tale of drugs, It was a telenovela, one of Latin Americas countless soap operas. But,unlike most, this one, on the upstart Azteca channel, had heard of politics: to be exact, of theintrigue around ex-president Carlos Salinas de Gortari and his brother Raul Salinas de Gortari. Iteven started with the murder of an attorney-general, have displaced the telenovela. PresidentErnesto Zedillo dumped his attorney-general, Antonio Lozano, a lawyer from the right-wingopposition PAN, The National Action Party.1Lozano gets some evidence on RaulMr. Lozanos bid to solve the later murder of Jose Francisco Ruiz Massieu, a top PRIofficial, had done not that good. He surprised many by ordering the arrest in early 1995 of RaulSalinas de Gortari, as the alleged mastermind, but failed to convict him. It looked as if he mightget the evidence he needed, when his men found a decaying corpse at a ranch owned by Raul. Mr.Lozano tipped off reporters.2 His men suggested these were the remains of a missingcongressman, Rauls supposed accomplice. The finding of mysterious money on RaulCould it be that, even in failure, Mr. Lozano had gone too far? Swiss investigators, andothers elsewhere later, turned up millions of dollars in secret accounts controlled by Raul Salinasde Gortari.3 Just where had the money come from? Drugs? Influence-pedding? And if so, thenatural question was, influence with whom? The natural answer was not made natural by brotherCarlos Salinas de Gortaris flight from the country after Rauls arrest. The ex-president, by thenin Ireland, had to testify in the Colosio case; he may have to do it again about the other murder. Mr. Zedillo often said Mr. Lozano had a free hand. None of this has reflected glory on the PRI.Swiss prosecutors visited Almoya Prison in December 1995.4 There, the ex-presidentsbrother described the techniques...
