Mexico’s poorest people to benefit from the proceeds of the auction

77 cars will be auctioned by the Mexican government -; including a Lamborghini Murcielago, Porsches, Corvettes and Mercedes -; as part of a 'Robin Hood' effort to return the proceeds of crime to the country’s poorest people.

Reuters reports this is the first of three sales that will be held by the newly created Institute to Return Stolen Goods to the People. The proceeds will go to two municipalities in the southern state of Oaxaca that the country’s President - Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador - says are among Mexico’s poorest.

The second sale deals with property and will benefit youth drug rehabilitation programs, while the third concerns jewelry, and will help communities living in the mountains of Guerrero state. The seized cars, houses and jewelry were seized from organised criminals and even a former politician.

In all, the 77 cars are set to fetch around US$1.5million at the auction, which will take place this Sunday. So paddles at the ready, for there could be bargains about…

STORY Tom Harrison