Jesús Antonio Gamboa Urías, a journalist and editor of the weekly online news site Nueva Prensa, was found dead last week in the north-western state of Sinaloa, considered one of Mexico’s most violent regions.

The remains of Gamboa Urías, 39, were found riddled with gunshots in a rural village near the city of Los Mochis, according to local reports.

Although two people have been arrested in connection with the death, the Office of the Attorney General in Sinaloa has said that it is discarding Gamboa Urías’ work as a journalist as a possible motive for his killing.

The International Press Institute (IPI) criticised that decision and called for a full investigation into the death.

“Sadly, this case represents yet another blow to press freedom in Mexico, a country that has been ravaged by violence and impunity for several years now,” IPI Press Freedom Manager Barbara Trionfi said. “The country’s Special Prosecutor’s Office has consistently failed to prosecute the perpetrators of these crimes. The failure to address these cases means that journalists reporting on sensitive issues continue to be targeted in Mexico.”

According to Article 19, a freedom of expression organisation with offices in Mexico, Mexican journalists have been the victim of at least 222 incidents of aggression so far this year.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) previously approached Mexico’s government to participate as a pilot country in a U.N. “Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity”. Approved in April 2012, the Plan calls for independent investigations of crimes against journalists and an end to impunity for such crimes, among other aims.

During a visit to Mexico in Feb. 2013, IPI representatives, along with members from the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), urged local legislators to pass legislation that would improve the safety of journalists working in that country.

According to Article 19, Gamboa Urías marks the fifth journalist to be killed in the state of Sinaloa since 2004. At least 9 journalists have been killed in Mexico during the current administration; six of them have been killed in 2014 alone.