Armed attack claims seven lives in eastern Mexico

An armed assault in Perote, a city in the eastern state of Veracruz, Mexico, resulted in the death of at least seven people, according to a statement released on Thursday by state governor, Cuitláhuac García Jiménez.

The governor expressed his condolences over the incident, which unfolded the previous night in the Sierra de Agua community within the municipality of Perote.

Via Twitter, he mentioned the arrest of two suspects “potentially linked to the crime,” who are now in custody for further investigation into their involvement in the incident.

Several local media outlets reported that the assault took place at a private residence, with the bodies of the victims being discovered and identified late into the night or early the following morning.

The governor officially confirmed these reports on Thursday afternoon through social media.

García, following a meeting of the Veracruz security council, reported that the investigations suggest the armed group attacked a “drug selling and consumption point.”

At the time of the assault, “two family-member sellers and three consumers” were present, he added.

Upon inspection, authorities discovered scales, bags used for distributing “crystal” meth, a backpack containing the same drug, and presumably stolen cell phones at the scene.

Veracruz has been embroiled in a surge of violence over the past six years, with conflicts between drug cartels and independent “huachicoleros” groups resulting in numerous executions, bodies dumped on roadsides and empty lots, and a significant number of missing persons, according to authority reports.

Recent months have seen an escalation in attacks by armed civilian groups against individuals and establishments.

This past April, a shooting at a clandestine bar in Veracruz resulted in six fatalities.

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