On 27 March 2022, 20 people were killed in a mass shooting in Las Tinajas, Zinapécuaro, Michoacán, Mexico.[1]
Background
The Mexican drug war is a low-intensity conflict which began in 2006. Michoacán, in western Mexico, is badly affected by the conflict. Several massacres have occurred there, including a mass shooting on 27 February 2022 in San José de Gracia.[2] Rival gangs in the area are also involved in smuggling of gasoline and in illegal tapping of pipelines.[1]
Incident
During the evening of 27 March 2022, gunmen armed with machine guns and assault rifles[3] opened fire at an illegal cockfighting pit and shot dead 17 men and three women. Several other people were wounded.[4][5] One person later died on their way to the hospital.[3] The massacre was believed to be part of a conflict between the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and a local gang called the Familia Michoacana.[6]
Aftermath
On 1 April 2022, five men were arrested in Susupuato in connection with the massacre. They were also linked to a February 2022 attack on a prosecutor's office in Maravatío.[7]
References
- ^ a b "Mexico cockfight shooting: Gunmen 'hid in chip van'". 29 March 2022 – via www.bbc.com.
- ^ "Gunmen 'storm cockfighting pit' in Mexico, kill 19". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ a b City, Lillian Perlmutter in Mexico (28 March 2022). "Massacre at cockfight in Mexico leaves 20 dead". the Guardian. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "Mexico shooting: At least 19 killed at cockfighting pit". BBC News. 28 March 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "Gunmen kill 19 at cockfight in troubled western Mexican state". Reuters. 28 March 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "Gunmen 'storm cockfighting pit' in Mexico, kill 20". www.aljazeera.com.
- ^ "Five people arrested for massacre in western Mexico". 2 April 2022.