Veracruz, March 6 (RHC)-- The governor of Veracruz has publicly apologized to the families of five victims killed by the state in 2016, but the victim's relatives continue to demand justice.

In an unprecedented event, Governor Cuitlahuac Garcia Jimenez said that authorities failed the victims and their families in the face of an atrocity that deserves justice. "We recognize that the State failed them and didn’t have the capacity to provide safety to the young people. Everyone should know that Veracruz state security forces arbitrarily detained and disappeared the children leaving you immense pain," the elected official said during a ceremony at the Memory and Tolerance Museum in Mexico City.

"We publicly acknowledge the responsibility of the state and offer an apology," said the leader to the families sitting in the auditorium’s front row.

In January 2016, five young people were detained in the Veracruz city of Tierra Blanca by state police officers. According to La Reforma, the police handed over the youth to members of the New Generation Jalisco cartel who tortured and murdered them. The ‘Tierra Blanca’ murders happened while Javier Duarte was in office. Last September, the former Veracruz governor was sentenced to nine years in prison on money laundering charges.

Parents of the victims have demanded justice in the case that’s now more than three years old.

According to the Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez Human Rights Center, there are 21 suspects in the case, but they are still enjoying impunity. The organization says the Veracruz state prosecutors office should also be investigated for collusion.