A college student who recently became the youngest female police chief in Mexico received death threats and is currently in United States to seek for asylum, an advocate for human rights reported on Friday.

Gustavo de la Rosa Hickerson, an official of the Human Rights Commission in the state of Chihuahua, said that Marisol Valles Garcia had received phone call threats last weekend.

According to a family member, the death threats came from a criminal group that forced her to work for them.

Valles, a 20-year-old single mother, took over the police chief position in the small town of Praxedis in October when two other candidates turned down the offer after the death of the town’s mayor and his son.

The rights activist said Valles was accompanied by a local official when she went to the international bridge between El Porvenir and Fort Hancock in Texas.

However, other media sources said the female chief of police went to United States with two relatives to seek asylum. But, officials in Praxedis G. Guerrero denied the speculations.

Meanwhile, Jose Flores, spokesperson of the city council, said Valles Garcia asked for a leave of absence, but she planned to come back to work on Monday.

Both de la Rosa Hickerson and Flores said they have attempted to contact Valles Garcia since Thursday, but she was not picking up her phone.

Pradexis G. Guerrero is a town with about 8,500 people. It is located southeast of Ciudad Juarez. Drug violence has turned it from a quiet farming community to a violent land.

Valles Garcia’s departure camejust a few months after Erika Gandara, the 28-year-old sole police officer of Pradexis’ nearby town Guadalupe, was kidnapped in December. Her whereabouts is still unknown.

Firefighters bring some Christmas cheer to the most violet city in Mexico by giving thousands of free toys in place of Santa Claus to many poor children the day before the Christmas.

Ciudad Juarez is considered the most harassed city across El Paso, Texas because of the rampant numbers of drug gangs.

Since Thursday night, hundreds of families braved the cold weather and gathered around central plaza just to get some of the care packages filled with different toys such as stuffed animals, dolls, and wooden horses gathered from the annual gift-giving event.

On Friday, some firefighters were even wearing Santa hats and red jackets while handing the gifts to the children. The firefighters redecorated the donated toys from the event. However, they destroyed all of the plastic guns that they have received so as not to encourage violent games.

Drug violence in the city has killed more than 3,000 people this year. Numerous small gangs operate in the area, which are thought to recruit poor children and teenagers to work for them as lookouts or even as hit men.

According to a resident, their city was not like that before. Today, the entire city is very sad as they experience so much violence and corruption, said Beatriz de la Cruz while waiting in line. She was hoping the firefighters would give her granddaughters a bicycle.

While widespread police corruption is observed across Mexico, Tapia, other parents said that they consider the firefighters as one of the few trustworthy bureaus left in the Ciudad Juarez.