Gunmen kill man near Riu Palace Las Americas hotel in Cancun

A man is said to have been involved in the accidental shooting of a 12-year-old boy on a beach in Cancun in July was shot dead on Wednesday.

The shooting on Wednesday took place on Caracol Beach, behind the Riu Palace Las Americas hotel. Witnesses said two gunmen, dressed in black and wearing orange life jackets, approached the victim on foot shortly before noon and shot the victim at least four times.

Beachgoers and hotel guests took cover as the attackers ran to a pair of jet skis and escaped. Hotel officials activated emergency protocols as dozens of police vehicles, as well as Army, Navy and National Guard officials responded to the 9-1-1 reports.

A Navy boat was dispatched to search for the jet skis and the attackers, while authorities secured the site and scoured the beach for clues. The unknown victim was pronounced dead at the scene by ambulance personnel.

Thursday is the The Quintana Roo Attorney General’s Office (FGE) released a statement identifying the victim as a Mexican national and a known criminal involved in gangs linked to the illegal drug trade.

“A connection has been established with the event of July 28 this year in which a minor was killed in the same area,” the FGE reported, stating that Wednesday’s victim had piloted the getaway jet ski after firing the bullet that killed the young Mexican tourist killed. . The July incident – ​​which was also declared gang-related – took place behind the Riu Hotel Cancún, right next to Wednesday’s shooting.

The FGE added that Wednesday’s victim was involved in the shooting of two people on a Cancun city bus on July 1.

The increasing presence in Cancun of organized crime gangs involved in drug trafficking, kidnapping and extortion has led the US State Department to issue travel advisories dating back to 2019, when an attack in a nightclub left five people dead.

In 2023, the department issued a travel alert warning travelers to “practice heightened situational awareness,” especially after dark, in Mexico’s Caribbean beach resorts such as Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum. September 6, 2024, Mexico travel advisory urged US citizens to “exercise more caution” when traveling to Quintana Roo.

With reports from Riviera Maya News, For Esto! And El Financiero