Mexico City, May 15 (teleSUR-RHC)-- A mayoral candidate of a municipality in the Mexican state of Michoacan was shot dead and three others were injured by an armed group following a campaign rally, local authorities reported on Thursday.

Enrique Hernandez Saucedo, a National Regeneration Movement (MORENA) candidate for the Yurecuaro muncipality, was killed by unidentified gunmen as he was walking to his vehicle along with his family. Three people were taken to hospital, but it was unclear if any of them were his relatives.

Hernandez was a former leader of one of the many self-defense forces in Michoacan, which were created in previous years due to the incompetence of government security forces to contain increasing drug-related violence.

However, some of the self-defense forces were said to operate with shady financing and in other cases, they were accused of actually working for drug cartels. In April of last year, various news media, including Infobae, reported that Hernandez had been arrested and charged with various murders and links to drug cartels. Hernandez accused the government of torturing him and was later released.

The people of Yurecuaro, a small town with a population of about 30,000, insisted on his innocence. Prosecutors never brought forward evidence linking him to any killings or any drug gangs. The MORENA candidate had also accused local police chiefs of aiding and protecting members of Los Caballeros Templarios or Knights Templars.

Newspaper Milenio said his death rattles the upcoming local June 7 elections, and it comes days after, according to El Pais, less than 2 percent of crimes committed in Mexico actually result in sentencing.

The United Nations has placed Mexico as one of the countries with the highest rate of impunity. The death of Hernandez comes days after the killing of ruling PRI party candidate of Chilapa, in the southern state of Guerrero, Ulises Fabian Quiroz.