Former mayor charged in student deaths after 43 went missing

GUERRO -- Prosecutors in the Mexican state of Guerrero said Friday they have formally charged former Iguala Mayor Jose Luis Abarca in the disappearance of 43 students.

Abarca is described as the "probable mastermind" in the September 26 disappearance of the students. He is charged with six counts of aggravated homicide and one count of attempted homicide, the state attorney's office said.

Authorities said the students -- mostly men in their 20s studying to be teachers -- were abducted by police in September at Abarca's direction and turned over to gang members who killed them.