Two men, reportedly the CEO and CFO of U.S.-based exploration firm  Southridge Minerals (PINKSHEETS: SRGE), have been found dead in a river in Mexico,  local press reports .

The bodies, corresponding to two men in their late 30s, were found by farmers who also recovered documents with the names of Michel Davies and Derald Johnston, which are the names of Southridge Minerals’s CEO and CFO. However this information has not been officially confirmed.

The company has been involved in a recent controversy over its rights over the Cinco Minas project. The conflict worsened early this month, after a Canadian junior released an independent report revealing that Southridge’s Cinco Minas property has been non-operational for the past several years.

Despite the U.S. company allegedly claiming the contrary, Canada’s Bandera Gold (TSXV:BGL) published a  detailed report with photos and videos showing evidence the site and machinery have been “completely non-operational for some time.”

Bandera’s Gold action followed an U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s announcement on December 28 that it had “temporarily suspended trading in the securities of Southridge because of questions regarding the accuracy of statements made by Southridge in press releases to investors concerning, among other things, the company’s business operations and arrangements.”

The Dallas-based firm, however, says in its website that it paid $7.5 million for exclusive concessions to mine the Cinco Minas and Gran Cabrera sites respectively located 100 and 135 kilometers northwest of Guadalajara in 2010. This fact is disputed by Bandera Gold, which claims ownership of both mines and displays the  concession certificates on its website .

(Image of Cinco Minas, by  Southridge Minerals )

http://www.mining.com/men-found-dead-in-mexic...ign=digest