Journalist and former municipal employee Marco Aurelio Ramirez, 69, was killed by a gunman on Tuesday in Puebla, central Mexico, local authorities said.

He was leaving his house when he was murdered in broad daylight in the community of Tehuacan. He worked for decades in the media. He had also worked in the municipality and was a contributor to a radio show.

The case is under investigation, the prosecutor’s office said.

The Mexican branch of the non-governmental organization Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) pointed out that Marco Aurelio Ramirez, in his capacity as a public official, had in the past contributed to the arrests of alleged criminals.

RSF “calls for a swift and transparent investigation”, added the organization defending the freedom of the press and journalists, in order to ascertain whether “his killing was related to his work in the municipality or his journalistic activity”.

More than 150 journalists have been murdered in Mexico since 2000, according to RSF. In most of these cases absolute impunity is the rule.