AS FOR THE EX-PRESIDENT

Government officials tell Lopez that Carlos Salinas is not under suspicion, though many people blame him for giving his accused brother excessive power that allowed him to carry out the alleged crimes. The chastened ex-president today withdrew his candidacy to lead the World Trade Organization, then publicly proclaimed his brother's innocence. If the charges are true, the Ruiz Massieu murder was a family affair: he was married to a Salinas sister. "Raul and Ruiz Massieu always hated each other," Lopez says, adding that police suspect a bad business deal between the two men might have supplemented a political motive.