Mexico: At least eighteen dead after mass shooting

Mexico has seen another brutal incident of gun violence. Shooters opened fire at the town hall of San Miguel Totolapan on Wednesday, October 5, killing at least 18 people.

According to reports from several local media, the massacre occurred on Wednesday afternoon local time, when an armed group opened fire at the San Miguel Totolapan City Hall, killing the mayor and 17 other people.

Although there was no official confirmation from the administration on the death toll, local media reports and eyewitnesses claimed that the bodies of at least 18 people were recovered from the scene.

Among those killed are Mayor Conrado Mendoza, his father and former mayor Juan Mendoza, and seven municipal police officers, “BNO News” reports.

The report says that the group used the popular method of fleeing the scene, setting fire to buses and other vehicles to block the roads.

The criminal group “Los Tequileros” claimed responsibility for the attack in a video circulated on social media, but there was no immediate confirmation from local authorities as to whether the gang was involved in the attack or if it was a bluff.

The gang said it had returned to the region where it had been fighting a rival drug ring. According to BBC, the group devastated the Pacific Coast region of Guerrero between 2015 and 2017 and was known to threaten mayors in the region.

The group ceased its activities in late 2017 after its leader Raybel Jacobo De Almonte, also known as El Tequilero, was assassinated.

With information from Latina Press

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