Mexican professional wrestler Juana Barraza is arrested in connection with the serial killing of at least ten elderly women.
Juana Barraza (born 27 December 1957) is a Mexican serial killer and former professional wrestler dubbed La Mataviejitas (Sp. "The Little Old Lady Killer") sentenced to 759 years in prison for the killing of 16 elderly women. The first murder attributed to Mataviejitas has been dated variously to the late 1990s and to a specific killing on 17 November 2003. The authorities and the press have given various estimates as to the total number of the Mataviejitas victims, with estimates ranging from 42 to 48 deaths. After the arrest of Juana Barraza the case of the Mataviejitas was officially closed despite more than 30 unresolved cases. Araceli Vzquez and Mario Tablas were also arrested in 2005 and called by police and media The Mataviejitas.
Lucha libre (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈlutʃa ˈliβɾe], meaning "freestyle wrestling" or literally translated as "free fight") is the term used in Mexico for professional wrestling. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has developed into a unique form of the genre, characterized by colorful masks, rapid sequences of holds and maneuvers, as well as "high-flying" maneuvers, some of which have been adopted in the United States, Japan, and elsewhere. The wearing of masks has developed special significance, and matches are sometimes contested in which the loser must permanently remove his mask, which is a wager with a high degree of weight attached. Tag team wrestling is especially prevalent in lucha libre, particularly matches with three-member teams, called trios.
Although the term today refers exclusively to professional wrestling, it was originally used in the same style as the American and English term "freestyle wrestling", referring to an amateur wrestling style without the restrictions of Greco-Roman wrestling.
Lucha libre wrestlers are known as luchadores (singular luchador, meaning "wrestler"). They usually come from extended wrestling families who form their own stables. One such line integrated to the United States professional wrestling scene is Los Guerreros.
Lucha libre has become a loanword in English, as evidenced by works such as Los Luchadores, ¡Mucha Lucha!, Lucha Mexico and Nacho Libre. Lucha libre also appears in other pop culture such as mainstream advertising: in Canada, Telus' Koodo Mobile Post Paid cell service uses a cartoon lucha libre wrestler as its spokesperson/mascot.
On July 21, 2018, Mexican Lucha libre was declared an intangible cultural heritage of Mexico City.