18 dead, including city mayor, in terrifying town hall massacre

Gun attack in Mexico leaves at least 18 dead, including town’s mayor – CBS News

According to state attorney general Sandra Luz Valdovinos, 18 people were killed in San Miguel Totolapan, Guerrero, Mexico, and two were wounded. Among those targeted and killed were Conrado Mendoza Almeda, the mayor, and his father, Juan Mendoza Acosta, the former mayor.

The city hall, as well as a private residence, were attacked. An armed group of men broke into San Miguel Totolapan’s municipal building and opened fire on a meeting between the mayor and city officials, shooting everyone present. It was at a private residence that the former mayor was killed.

Mexico’s assistant secretary of public safety, Ricardo Mejia, says this act occurred as a result of a dispute between criminal gangs. According to Mejia, the Los Tequileros control the region, kidnapping, extorting, murdering, and distributing opiates.

A local criminal group claimed responsibility for the crime on social media, demonstrating the dangerous power of the Mexican drug mafia. Los Tequileros, which is also connected to the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel, owned the massacre.

It is unclear if Almeda had any connections to the attackers, but his father, who was also killed Wednesday, had dealt with them in the past.

During the state elections in which Almeda’s father was elected, a video circulated online last year showing the former mayor drinking with members of the Los Tequileros gang. They claimed to have helped him win and wanted his help in return.

The BBC’s Mexico correspondent, Grant, reported: “that even by the violent standards of Guerrero state, this was a shocking attack.”

During a recent interview with the New York Times, Dr. Edgar Garcia Carrillo said that the region had descended into “absolute warfare.”

The United States State Department recently warned Americans about traveling to Mexico, stating that: “Violent crimes such as homicide, kidnapping, carjacking, and robbery are widespread and common in Mexico.”. The U.S. government has limited ability to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens in many areas of Mexico.”

The State Department advises against traveling to Colima, Guerrero, Michoacan, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas, and Zacatecas in Mexico.

Evelyn Salgado Pineda, governor of Guerrero, condemned the attack and promised to hold those responsible accountable for their actions.

For more coverage on this story, see additional news sources below:

Brutal Mexican massacre leaves 20 dead near Acapulco, including mayor whose father may have been in league with the gang responsible The Blaze

Mexico mayor assassinated in town hall massacre BBC

Gun attack in Mexico leaves at least 18 dead, including town’s mayor CBS News

Gunmen in violent Mexican state kill 20, including town mayor Reuters

Mexico mayor among 20 killed in town hall massacre The Guardian