Catholic Diocese Asks for Public Apology After State Police Remove Cameras From Presbyterian Church in Villahermosa, Mexico

VILLAHERMOSA, Tabasco, June 5, 2026. Father Denis Ochoa Vidal, spokesman for the Diocese of Tabasco, called on state authorities to clarify a recent operation against the Presbyterian Church in Villahermosa, in which state police officers removed video surveillance equipment. According to the report, the officers acted under the argument of fighting “hawks.” When he was asked whether similar incidents had occurred at Catholic temples in the state, Ochoa Vidal said they had not.

The Catholic spokesman said that, after a thorough investigation, the relevant security agencies should offer a public apology to the affected community to compensate for the moral impact of the operation. He said the purpose was to clear the name of the Presbyterian congregation and to protect the public standing of faith institutions.

“A call for the authorities to investigate thoroughly and to be clarified because integrity and good fame are involved,” Ochoa Vidal said. “We believe that they are whole associations dedicated to evangelizing, for the good of all, to create no doubt, no suspicion of anyone.”

He also said that the relevant authorities should ask for an apology, because the good reputation of the Presbyterian religious association was at stake. He spoke of protecting the civil and legal honorability of religious groups.

The Catholic representation defended the use of surveillance technology for community security. The operation was described as targeting criminal surveillance networks on private properties and at religious sites. Ochoa Vidal said churches had installed recording equipment because they had been the target of crime, and he reported multiple robberies at both parishes and local chapels.

He said the Diocese of Tabasco had consistently cooperated with the authorities, particularly the Attorney General’s Office (FGE), when illicit activity appeared near sacred grounds. “On many occasions the authorities, when thefts have been reported outside the temples, ask us to review the cameras that have the chapels and parishes to better collect the data,” Ochoa Vidal said, adding that video surveillance in the temples contributes to public safety.

Source: Read the original report (translated from Spanish)