-Elon Musk, one of the richest men in the world and CEO of Tesla, acquired land in Santa Catarina, Nuevo León, to build a Gigafactory. However, these lands, which cover more than 1,194 hectares and were purchased for more than 100 million dollars, are in the middle of a legal dispute that dates back 20 years. The property is claimed by María de los Ángeles García Jiménez and her seven siblings, who claim to be the rightful owners, reports the media La Jornada.
What is known about the conflict?
Property claim:
María de los Ángeles García Jiménez, 71, claims that the land has belonged to her family for decades. She says she has documents that support her claim, including five deeds, seven intestate documents and the payment of property tax for the last 50 years.
According to her, the Garza Ayala family, descendants of a former governor of Nuevo León, Lázaro Garza Ayala, has been involved in a fraud to deprive her family of the land. The Garza Ayalas illegally sold the land to Elon Musk, despite not being the legitimate owners.
Fraud and corruption:
María de los Ángeles claims that the Registry and Cadastral Institute of Nuevo León “disappeared” the documents of her properties. In 2009, she discovered that her cadastral file had been canceled and that the lands were registered in the name of other people.
She claims that the Garza Ayalas, with the complicity of corrupt officials, made illegal corrections in the records to award themselves the lands. Even the legal notifications were sent to incorrect addresses to prevent her family from defending their rights.
Legal litigation:
Since 2019, María de los Ángeles and her brother Pedro Manuel García Jiménez have filed an administrative litigation lawsuit (number 1255/2019) against former directors of the Cadastre and other officials, including Carlos Garza Ibarra, current director of Credits and Collections of the Ministry of Finance of Nuevo León.
They also sued the descendants of Lázaro Garza Ayala, who have been accused of dispossessing property from other people in the state.
History of violence:
María de los Ángeles recounts that her family has suffered violent attacks by the Garza Ayalas, including shootings on their property. This led her father to move the family to Apodaca to protect them, although they continued to pay the property tax on the Carvajal ranch.
Communication with Elon Musk:
María de los Ángeles has sent several letters to Elon Musk and Nuevo León Governor Samuel García, informing them of the fraud and claiming her right to the land. So far, she has not received a response.
She insists that she has no personal conflict with Musk, but demands that she and her siblings be paid for the land that rightfully belongs to them.
What are the implications of the case?
For Elon Musk: This litigation could delay or even paralyze the construction of the Gigafactory in Nuevo León, a key project for Tesla’s expansion in Latin America.
For the government of Nuevo León: The case exposes an alleged network of corruption in the Registry and Cadastral Institute, which could generate a political and legal scandal.
For the alleged legitimate owners: María de los Ángeles and her family are seeking justice and recognition of their rights to the land, which they say they have defended for decades.
“Tesla remains on hold,” says Samuel García
The governor of Nuevo León, Samuel García, confirmed that the project to install Tesla’s Gigafactory in Santa Catalina, Nuevo León, remains on hold. This statement comes despite the fact that, in previous weeks, the president had suggested that there would be news on the subject by January 20.
During an interview on Telediario Mediodía, García Sepúlveda explained that the situation has been influenced by the economic positions of the former president of the United States, Donald Trump, whom he described as “very tough” in his policies.
“Well, we are still on pause. His last statement was back in October, where he said that he was going to wait for the election in the United States and that the new president, well, would not oppose it. What have we seen? Well, Mr. Trump has already come in, we have already seen how, well, he has been very tough,” said the governor.
Despite this pause in the Tesla project, García Sepúlveda ruled out that Trump’s arrival to the presidency of the United States has negatively affected foreign direct investment in Nuevo León.
Source: elimparcial
