12 bodies with signs of torture found with cartel messages in Mexico, authorities say

Twelve bodies – all with signs of torture and messages left behind in clusters – were found on Thursday in the central Mexican state. Guanajuatosaid local authorities, saying the killings were the result of conflicts between organized crime groups.

Guanajuato, a thriving industrial center that’s also home to popular tourist spots, is currently Mexico’s most violent state, according to official homicide statistics.

12 bodies were found within two hours in five locations in the city of Salamanca, according to the federal prosecutor’s office, which is investigating the case.

The victims — three women and nine men — were found on roads, bridges and trails, their bodies bearing gunshot wounds and signs of torture, and one mutilated, officials said.

The state prosecutor’s office also said that the perpetrators left messages when the van claimed responsibility.

The messages are there often left on the victims’ bodies by drug gangs who want to threaten their rivals or punish behavior they say violates their laws.

The bodies were found in less than 24 hours gunmen attacked a residential center of people who were abused by drugs in one municipality, four died.

“This month of October started with the highest level of crime here. That makes 16 people (killed) so far,” Salamanca Mayor Cesar Prieto told reporters.

But he said the violence affecting the city is “a temporary issue” that erupts “when one group decides to attack another.”

In Guanajuato, two cartels, the Santa Rosa de Lima and the powerful Jalisco New Generationthey are now at war.

Police, politicians and citizens are all targeted in Guanajuato. In June, the baby and toddler were among six members of one family you have been killed in Guanajuato. In April, the mayoral candidate was He was shot dead in the street in Guanajuato when he started the campaign.

Last December, 11 people were killed and twelve others were injured in an attack on a Christmas Eve party in the state. A few days before that, the the bodies of five university students They were found stuffed in a car on a dirt road in Guanajuato.

The US State Department is urging the US to reconsider going to Guanajuato. “Of particular concern is the high number of killings in the southern region of the region related to cartel-related violence,” the ministry said in a tourism advisory.

Beset by intense violence linked to organized crime, Mexico has recorded more than 450,000 murders since December 2006, when the military’s anti-drug campaign was launched.

The new president is Claudia Sheinbaum announced that he will present his national security plan next Tuesday.