The real events surrounding the assassination of Luis Colosio
have been fictionalized to depict this tragic moment in Mexico's history.
Hey, shorty, is yours small?
You're hot!
Good evening.
Eighty pesos a night or 50 for one hour.
May I ask you some questions?
Before March the 23rd, a guy came, a bit shorter than me,
with dark skin and a moustache.
Really? You're looking for a guy with a moustache?
He drove a red VW Beetle.
Did you see him?
A cop like you, right?
What?
A cop came to see him, the one that's been on TV.
López Riestra? The one who caught the drug lord?
Yes, him.
- Are you sure about that? - Yes.
- Thank you. - You're welcome.
A NETFLIX ORIGINAL SERIES
It really is Mario. He's alive.
You can't touch the prisoner.
Sit down, Mom.
Mario, I'm Mother Antonia. I'm helping your family.
This is Mr. Albarrán, attorney at law.
He's taken your case.
We have a writ of protection in process
to prove that your detention and interrogation were unlawful.
I think we can get you out in a month.
We'll get you out of here soon, son.
I'd rather you didn't come anymore, Mom.
Don't get me wrong. This is no place for you.
But it is no place for you either, Mario.
If I did what I did, I must pay my dues.
Are you telling the truth?
I don't want anything to happen to you because of me.
Talk to Alma, talk to my dad.
Go to the United States. It'll be dangerous for you here.
Do as I say.
I want to go now.
Don't go, Mario.
Take good care of my sisters.
Please keep them safe.
Mario...
Mario, don't give up, son.
MARCH 29, 1994
I swear on Colosio, the PRI, and Mexico.
ERNESTO ZEDILLO IS SWORN IN AS PRI PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE.
I'm glad to hear you're all right, Diana Laura.
To be honest, I was worried.
Well, we do our best to make these days bearable.
Sometimes we can, sometimes we can't. We're coping.
Are you moving?
I don't know yet.
We were renting, so I have to crunch the numbers.
No, these boxes are things that are still painful to see.
Well, Diana Laura, as you know, I'm starting my campaign.
We'd like you to be with us during the inauguration.
No, Ernesto.
I'm sorry, but I'm not interested in participating
in anything that has to do with the succession.
Yes, I suppose.
But your presence is very important.
Besides being pleasant for us,
well, it would help legitimize me.
In addition, we've taken you into account for a seat in the Senate.
We think it could help you emotionally, economically.
No, Ernesto, I'm sorry.
I'm not interested in participating
in anything that has to do with the succession.
Think about it. Give it some thought.
The point is we don't want you to feel alone
and we want to assure you that Luis Donaldo's values are still...
Stop using my husband's name, please.
Focus on doing justice and finding the murderer.
That's all I ask of you. Does it seem like what I'm asking for is impossible?
Diana Laura, you know I can't interfere in the investigation.
But I assure you, it's among my priorities as president.
Oh, Ernesto, when you're president, I'll be dead.
Without Diana Laura's presence, it'll be hard to reach the people.
Luis Donaldo's shadow is heavy, very heavy, and you know it.
I understand that Diana Laura's refusal is a stone in your shoe, but only that.
We're doing fine.
We're on the right track.
Sometimes things seem too easy to you.
Adding her support was important.
Just smile and stick to the schedule.
I'll take care of the rest.
We're where we wanted to be, aren't we?
I'm Deputy Attorney General Montes.
In this document, you attest that the person you just saw
is Mario Aburto, your son.
In order to end the rumors that he is somebody else,
you state that there is and has been only one Mario Aburto.
Yes, he is my son.
But he's acting very strange.
My Mario isn't like that.
Mario's confession is very ambiguous.
I've always been able to tell when he's lying.
Maybe he's sick, maybe they're not feeding him here.
All we need is for you to confirm that he's your son.
May God forgive me.
It has been concluded...
that a prearranged action took place
by members of the Tucanes group,
a private security corps hired to contain the crowd at the event.
DIONISIO: YOU LIED. YOU HIRED THE SECURITY.
Make sure you hand this to General Dionisio in person.
- Please, Octavio, in his hand. - Yes, madam. Excuse me.
I really appreciate it.
Diana Laura.
- Hi. - Hello.
Manlio, how are you?
- Fine. How are you? How's it going? - Coping as best as we can.
- This is a lot of work. - Yes.
Are you sure you don't need this house? Am I imposing?
I liked our other house better.
Darling...
No, it's fine. I spend most of my time in Sonora. Use it.
Hey!
The lady is in charge.
Thank you.
Feel free to move things around, make yourself at home.
Take a look at this.
"Ernesto Rubio Mendoza."
HAVE YOU SEEN HIM?
Salas! Please hand these out tomorrow.
See if anyone knows this guy.
I'll leave them here.
I hired them like I always do.
The people who are interested meet outside the party HQ.
- The PRI? - Yes. The group is called "Tucanes."
It stands for "All United Against the Pan Party."
We are PRI partisans. We always have been.
How do you hire them? What happens after you meet them?
I ask them, "Do you want in?"
"Yes, I heard there's an event."
"Okay, we have to fence the candidate."
"How much?" I tell them how much, and that's it.
Where did you meet Mario Aburto?
I'd never seen him before.
- He didn't come with you? - Absolutely not.
They say they saw him talking to Tranquilino, one of your men.
Ask Tranquilino.
Maybe he knows him from somewhere else. How should I know?
- Start with the cheer. Move forward! - Colosio! Colosio!
Keep moving!
There were a lot of people. Holding them back was difficult.
It's a lie that I pushed the general and didn't let him through.
TRANQUILINO SANCHEZ TUCANES GROUP
How could I push him among all those people?
I pushed the woman to move. I didn't see the guy with the gun.
We're not framing you.
In the video, it's clear you raised your arm for him to lean on.
I can't see a thing with this eye.
I have a cataract.
I couldn't have seen him coming.
What were you talking about with Aburto here?
Look at this picture. It was in the papers.
I don't remember seeing him.
No, no, I wasn't close.
I was trying to clear the way in front of him.
Tranquilino raised his arm.
I don't know if it helped him aim.
Tranquilino didn't do anything. He just left him there.
Maybe to let him escape.
The contradictions in the Tucanes testimonies aren't natural.
It's normal. They won't tell the truth. They never do.
That's why it's better to hire security.
It's obvious they arranged to say different things to confuse us.
It's part of the plot.
Frankly, if you'll allow me, I don't think they're involved.
Why?
Tijuana is full of madmen. Aburto may have acted alone.
Him and his madness.
Look, Commander.
Those people, the Tucanes,
are most probably part of a subversive group.
- Find out everything about them. - Yes, sir.
Where they came from, where they started,
their ideology, and how they infiltrated the party.
If you investigate all that, you'll never finish.
Excuse me, Commander, but I've had enough
of your homeboy Benítez's leaks,
your stories about the murder at the auto shop,
and Aburto's clones!
What murder are you talking about?
I forbid you...
Listen carefully.
I forbid you from mentioning, informing, or stating
any theory other than the official one!
We are carrying out a scientific investigation!
You belong to this institution!
You must respect this investigation!
Your duty is to discipline yourself. Is that clear?
We are trying to keep the nation afloat.
They just assassinated the man who would be our next president,
and we need to find out who did it and why!
We owe the nation that much! We owe Diana Laura that much!
And her children, too!
I think...
López Riestra hired the guy and Rubio to kill Colosio.
Yes, but who hired López Riestra?
The government? A drug lord?
Both.
You brought a guy in flip-flops to do ballistics?
Trust me.
No, darling.
Stay quietly here. You can't make any noise.
Yes, Mom.
Luis!
I don't like bringing them here, but my sister couldn't pick them up.
If it makes you feel better, I'll wait for her with them.
Thank you, Miguel.
- Any news? - No, not really.
Though we're working on the possibility of a political motive.
That's what I believe, too.
The country is agitated, the guerilla in Chiapas...
It wasn't them, no.
Maybe not them, but any other subversive group.
We're looking into it.
Or someone from the party?
No.
No, no. The party is a very disciplined organization.
Miguel, many benefited from Donaldo's death,
you know it very well.
I don't doubt there are people who want to benefit from all this
to gain more power, but this came from the outside,
from someone who wants to destabilize.
I have to go in, darling.
Come here.
- See you later. - Yes, Mom.
Lupita, stay with Miguel. Thank you, Miguel.
- Yes. - See you later.
- Bye. - Goodbye, Mom.
Are you really going to catch the guy who killed my dad?
- We're working on it, kiddo. - Okay.
ONCOLOGY
Yes, it's him. It's Ernesto Rubio.
So, he's your boyfriend?
He hasn't called me in a while.
I thought he was in the United States until...
until I saw the picture.
Where does he live?
It's evident they cleaned up the place.
Why don't we ask the neighbors?
They won't speak.
Is this another dead end or what?
No, there has to be something here.
Benítez!
- What is it? - You have to see this.
- He didn't pay the electric bill? - No, take a look at the name.
López Riestra.
Excuse me, madam. Sorry to disturb you. The Secret Service is asking to come in.
- What? - Mrs. Colosio, I apologize for this.
What? What is it?
This is how I have to get around. Being a former president isn't easy.
- What... What do you want? - To help you.
And help myself, that's all.
Luis Donaldo's absence hurts us both.
You and I are alone. We have no one to protect us.
We're easy targets for the people who planned your husband's attack.
I have a proposal.
Let's start the Colosio Foundation.
You'll preside over it.
It'll give us institutional power to press for the truth
and make them stop attacking us.
- I'm not interested... - You're Mexico's widow.
You have unimaginable power.
Córdoba Montoya threatened me this very morning.
They're desperate and capable anything,
but they're vulnerable, too.
Let's make them fall.
Only then will there be truth and justice.
Who let you in, General?
I see two representations of me.
The one on the right marks the position you said you were in.
The one on the left, behind Colosio,
marks the position the Tucanes say you had at the time of the assassination.
You suspect I was involved in Mr. Colosio's murder.
I'm afraid you've been quite erratic, contradictory,
and a liar, General.
What are you so afraid of?
I should've noticed something was wrong.
I failed.
I was used.
I was a convenient fool.
Who made the decision to hire private security?
My instructions were to leave the local police out of it...
given they were the opposition.
Did your instructions...
give orders to hire the Tucanes group?
No, it was the Tijuana PRI.
They told me the Tucanes were right for the job.
You seem like a good man, General.
But I can't discount you as a suspect.
I swear I had nothing to do with it.
That isn't enough, General.
Just imagine.
I met Luis Donaldo's son, who is now an orphan,
during Salinas's campaign six years ago.
He was practically a baby.
A night hasn't gone by...
that I don't think about both of his children.
I'd love to believe you...
but for now, I must ask the Secret Service to hold you under arrest.
I hope you understand.
Lately I can't sleep, so I cook and it helps me relax.
- That's why I run. - Of course.
I heard it didn't go well with Diana Laura.
I understand the loss has been very hard on her.
She suspects us...
and I don't think it's fair.
No, it isn't, but what happened to her isn't fair either.
I'm worried that she'll talk to the foreign press and say things.
People, the media,
our peers in politics will always talk.
What's more, they'll always lie to achieve their goals.
I know.
Do you know how many people have questioned your candidacy
because of your closeness to Córdoba?
Does that bother you?
My candidate and my main advisor getting along...
- Why would that bother me? - Listen.
I'm grateful.
Córdoba put me where he put me,
and opportunities are always appreciated.
That a credit to you.
But Córdoba isn't stupid.
He supported me for his benefit.
I knew to take advantage of the opportunity.
That's my merit. I hope it's clear to Córdoba.
You've learned very fast.
- You know who you're messing with. - I want to see how he reacts.
- That's what worries me. - Look, it's a provoking maneuver.
You throw the bait, see how the creep reacts,
then catch him lying.
I don't know if that shit works.
You fight fire with fire. It does work, Rubi.
I don't know.
All I know is that you can only be one of three things:
a boxer, a trafficker, or a policeman.
What do you think López Riestra is?
My dear agents!
Have a drink. It's past noon.
Someone's here for you, Chief López Riestra!
Gentlemen.
May I?
I wanted to ask you about a stiff.
Colosio or someone else?
They say that's what you're investigating.
No.
Ernesto Rubio.
Ring a bell?
A jerk that turned up dead in an auto shop
the day of the attack.
It turns out he lives in an apartment you own.
I have three apartments.
I bought them with the reward money from catching that drug lord.
But my wife rents them. I don't know how or to whom.
Fine...
then we'll ask your wife.
Maybe you can help me with someone else.
A guy I also detained the day of the attack.
You don't even know his name.
No, but he fits the profile.
What profile?
Dark skin, thin...
and with a moustache?
Half of Tijuana fits the description, man.
But this one really resembles Aburto.
And I mean a lot.
Look, Benítez, get it straight.
The Colosio attack isn't your case.
Let it go.
They could burn you.
Ready? It won't hurt anymore.
It'll take 30 minutes.
Thank you.
- She doesn't want any visitors. - It's all right. Thank you.
So, you got my message?
Yes, madam.
I only want to express...
- my grief. - Listen.
Are you going to tell me the truth, General?
Madam, I always strived for your husband's safety.
Don't ever doubt that.
So?
What happened?
Someone may have used me.
I'm sure of that, but who? Who?
I don't know.
What I'm sure of is it was someone in the party.
It couldn't have been from outside.
Why would I believe you now? You've lied to me before.
I'll be damned!
They gave you this watch the day Colosio was murdered?
Yes, a skinny guy that works in your office gave it to me
along with other things that belong to Mario.
We should ask Salas for the log.
Look, you can see it here when he pulls out the gun.
There.
It isn't clear.
Let's not discard it. Mario could be absolutely innocent.
I have a hearing in Mexico City tomorrow. This is very important.
You can see a black strip on his wrist.
It could be a wristwatch.
Or it could be part of the leather jacket.
No, it's a watch. You can see the bulge.
- Right? - Yes, it's a watch.
Yes.
- May I keep these? - Of course.
The president is arriving now to announce some changes in his cabinet.
It seems we're ready. Let's listen to the president.
Fellow countrymen,
people of the press,
I am honored to announce
that I have decided to name
my former and trusted collaborator, José Córdoba Montoya,
as representative of my administration
in the Inter-American Development Bank.
From Washington, he'll be a financial containment ram
to watch over the growth of the country.
I'm also taking this opportunity
to congratulate José Francisco Ruiz Massieu,
who will be appointed today
as General Secretary of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, PRI.
He's protecting him.
From what?
I'm sure he had something to do with it.
Diana Laura, I think we have to take it easy on this subject.
This entire situation could really hurt the children.
Do you think this hurts the children?
It hurts them more
to be near those murdering thieves you defend so much, Luis.
Excuse me.
What the hell?
- Motherfuckers, what are you doing? - Sons of bitches!
There's no need for violence.
We have a warrant.
Fuck you and López Riestra. Let's go!
What, motherfucker?
Let's go.
- But... - Listen to me, man. Listen!
Listen.
We have the damn watch and we have the bullet, man.
Let them take whatever they want.
I told you to stop your unauthorized Colosio investigation.
Fuck you, asshole.
Lucía.
Is it done?
Yes. Please take it off.
You need the doctor's order.
Please, I have to go.
Lucía, I beg you, take it off. I don't need to stay any longer.
Thank you.
"Many of us have kept our ideals secret
to take the empire by surprise and stay alive,
to keep fighting for ideals that will make this a better nation."
Did López Riestra send that?
My reprimand had effect.
"Rulers who don't do right by their people with true justice
will pay the consequences.
Signed by a son of the nation,
Eagle Knight."
How did he get that?
- Benítez. - He never told us.
López Riestra searched his office. He was doing his own investigation.
- Have the team analyze it. - Yes, sir.
And have them investigate if there's a group called "Eagle Knights."
This could be the key.
Diana Laura.
You look very pale.
- Wouldn't you rather wait... - No, I don't have time, Carlos.
I came because there's an idea spinning in my mind.
Only you can help me clear it up.
I'm sick of speculating all the time.
Why did you send Córdoba away?
Anyone would think you're protecting him.
He was the one who told Zedillo not to go to Lomas Taurinas.
One doesn't need to be particularly malicious
to come to that conclusion, Diana Laura.
Of course I sent him away to protect him.
I thought you'd try to disguise it a bit.
Disguise what?
If Córdoba hadn't left, public opinion would have lynched him...
How can you be so sure he wasn't involved?
Why do you trust him so blindly?
I'd stick my neck out for Córdoba.
I wouldn't do it for anyone else.
What happened with Montes?
You asked for him to lead the investigation yourself.
Don't you trust him anymore?
Yes, but I don't trust you people.
Don't look for enemies where there aren't any.
From here, we're moving heaven and earth
to keep those ridiculous rumors
from turning Aburto into a martyr.
I just want justice to be done.
Carlos, you people don't know if that kid really did it.
Diana Laura...
believing in Luis Donaldo wasn't my obligation.
But still, I did.
An assassination of this kind doesn't happen to just anyone.
Haven't you wondered
if your husband was involved in something?
Respect my husband's memory, will you?
Mrs. Colosio? What are you doing here? Weren't you leaving the hospital tomorrow?
No.
Someone brought you a box.
- A box? - I'll bring it.
Who?
I don't know. I found it at the door.
Thank you, Lupita.
Excuse me.
- Hi. - Hello.
- Manlio, how are you? - Fine, and you?
Fine.
How's it going?
Coping as best as we can.
This is a lot of work.
Yes.
Are you sure you don't need this house? Am I imposing?
I liked our other house better.
Darling...