Mexican police confirm grisly gang video showing bodies kicked, burned and shot
Updated 11:18 AM CST, February 21, 2024
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Authorities in Mexico said Wednesday they have largely confirmed the contents of a grisly drug cartel video showing gunmen shooting, kicking and burning the corpses of their enemies.
In a country where videos of decapitations and executions have appeared on social media before, the video released Tuesday was still chilling.
A squad of whooping, cursing gunmen can be seen on a wooded mountainside, standing over the bullet-ridden bodies of their rivals. They then kick and abuse the corpses, shoot them repeatedly, strip some and drag them to an improvised pyre and set them on fire.
Some of the dead gunmen appeared to have made a last stand inside a low, circular pile of stones. Drug cartels in Mexico frequently make videos of dead or captured gang members to intimidate or threaten rivals.
Prosecutors in the Pacific coast state of Guerrero said late Tuesday they had reached the remote scene of the crime in the mountain township of Totolapan and found five charred bodies.
. . . Most of the dead — like the living cartel gunmen seen in the video — were wearing military-style green or camouflage shirts with ammunition belts.
More:
https://apnews.com/article/mexico-violence-bodies-cartels-ac2843f7bc4bd41e6953cd66785f23a9
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5 charred bodies found in remote Mexico town after reported clash between criminals
Updated on: February 21, 2024 / 8:02 AM EST / CBS/AFP
Acapulco, Mexico — Five charred bodies were found Tuesday in a remote village in the southern Mexican state of Guerrero after reports of a confrontation between suspected criminals, local authorities said. The state prosecutor's office said on social media that police, soldiers and forensic experts went to the mountain community of Las Tunas to verify the reports.
"They located the bodies of five burned people," the office said in a statement, noting the victims had not been identified. It said the bodies were transferred to the state forensic medical service.
Local news outlets published images of a presumed confrontation between criminals that took place on Monday and left several dead. Given the difficulties in communication and accessing the area, the prosecutor's office requested the support of federal forces in launching their investigation.
Las Tunas is part of the municipality of San Miguel Totolapan, where in October 2020 an attack by a criminal group on the local city hall left 20 dead, including the mayor and his father.
More:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mexico-bodies-found-gerrero-criminal-gang-drug-cartel-violence/
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Same down, different mayor:
Mexico mayor assassinated in town hall massacre
6 October 2022
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By Nathan Williams
BBC News
Mayor Conrado Mendoza Almeda's party condemned his "cowardly" assassination
Gunmen have shot dead the mayor of a small town in western Mexico, and at least 17 others, officials say.
Police say gunmen stormed the San Miguel Totolapan town hall at 14:00 (19:00 GMT) on Wednesday. Photos online show it riddled with bullet holes.
Mayor Conrado Mendoza Almeda's left-wing PRD party condemned his "cowardly" assassination and demanded justice.
The attack has been blamed on the Los Tequileros criminal gang, which is linked to a powerful drug cartel.
Police officers and council workers were also killed in the massacre, with graphic images of bloodied bodies lying on the ground circulating on social media.
Mr Mendoza Almeda's father, former mayor Juan Mendoza Acosta, was also killed - in his home - before the attack moved to the town hall.
A highway in the state of Guerrero, where San Miguel Totolapan lies, was reportedly briefly blocked by large vehicles to prevent security forces from getting into the city.
EPA Bullet-ridden San Miguel Totolapan town hall, Mexico. Photo: 5 October 2022EPA
The town hall was riddled with bullets during the violent attack
More:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-63153362
