Following a shooting in southern Mexico on Wednesday, at least 18 people were killed, including the mayor of a town, according to the police. The attack took place in the Guerrero state town of Totolapan. Guerrero's municipal hall was shot at by a group of men, and it looks like organized crime was involved.
Police say armed individuals attacked the San Miguel Totolapan town hall on Wednesday around 14:00 (19:00 GMT). The slaughter also claimed the lives of police officers and council employees, with graphic pictures of bleeding bodies laying on the ground going viral on social media. Before the attack spread to the town hall, Juan Mendoza Acosta, the father of Mr. Mendoza Almeda, was also killed in his home.
The criminal organization Los Tequileros, which is connected to a potent drug cartel, has been accused of carrying out the assault.
Large cars apparently briefly blocked a highway in the state of Guerrero, where San Miguel Totolapan is located, to prevent security troops from entering the city. Tierra Caliente, a dangerous area in western Mexico under the control of drug cartels, contains San Miguel Totolapan. The lucrative drug routes north along the Pacific region are contested by numerous gangs.
Guerrero's attorney general stated that in addition to the 18 fatalities, three other individuals had also been injured in a preliminary report that was made available to local media. The defense ministry announced after the attack that army and navy personnel were being sent to the area to track down the shooters. Evelyn Salgado Pineda, the governor of Guerrero, tweeted her sincere regret for the fatalities.
The Los Tequileros drug gang, which had been engaged in a conflict with another drug group nearby, announced its return to the area in a video posted on social media just before the attack.
The criminal organization that ravaged Guerrero between 2015 and 2017 was well known for menacing local mayors before Raybel Jacobo de Almonte was killed. De Almonte's gang adopted the moniker "El Tequilero" (the Tequila Drinker) from him.
Conrado Mendoza's political party, the PRD, released a statement announcing the mayor's demise. The group demanded justice and denounced the assault.
This is the third occurrence of this kind in recent weeks in Mexico. At a bar in Guanajuato on September 21, a group of gunmen murdered 10 people. A week later, five other police officers and the police chief of Calera, Zacatecas, were also murdered in a similar manner.
