Juan Lopez is the fourth member of an environmental activism group based in in Tocoa to be killed since 2023. President Xiomara Castro condemned the murder and has ordered an investigation.

An anti-mining environmental activist in Honduras who protested to preserve tropical forests and rivers was killed over the weekend, even after warnings to better ensure his safety.

Juan Lopez, 46, was gunned down as he left church Saturday in the northeastern town of Tocoa, police said on Sunday.

Lopez belonged to the Municipal Committee for the Defense of Common and Public Goods, an environmental organization in Tocoa on the country’s Atlantic coast.

Three other members of the group were killed last year in what the organization saw as retaliation.

The group had suffered threats and harassment for years amid efforts to preserve the Guapinol and San Pedro rivers, and the Carlos Escaleras nature reserve, as the presence of mining and hydro-electric companies increased.

Global Witness, a British NGO, says Honduras is one of the world’s most dangerous countries for environmental activists.

Latin America accounted for 85% of all the world’s environmentalists who were killed last year, with 18 deaths registered in Honduras, according to Global Witness.