MEXICO CITY – A gang of gunmen entered a resort where dozens of vacationers were spending the weekend in central Mexico and opened fire, killing six adults and a seven-year-old, authorities said.
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Officials from the municipality of Cortazar, in the state of Guanajuato, said in a statement that an eighth person was seriously injured in the afternoon’s attack in the resort of La Palma. The statement did not speculate about a possible motive.
After the shooting, the attackers vandalized the spa shop and took the surveillance cameras before fleeing, officials said. Three women, three men and the child died.
A video posted to social media shows several people in swimsuits walking around crying, screaming and hugging their children.
Mexican soldiers and police officers searched for the attackers with the help of a helicopter.
Guanajuato, an agricultural and industrial hub, has been Mexico’s most violent state in years. The Jalisco New Generation drug cartel has fought with local criminal groups including the Santa Rosa de Lima cartel, which appears to be backed by the Sinaloa cartel.