A man allegedly involved in the accidental shooting of a 12-year-old boy on a Cancún beach in July was shot and killed on Wednesday.
Wednesday’s shooting occurred on Caracol Beach behind the Riu Palace Las Americas hotel. Witnesses said two gunmen dressed in black and wearing orange life vests approached the victim on foot shortly before noon, shooting the victim at least four times.
Beachgoers and hotel guests ran for cover as the attackers raced to a pair of jet skis and made their escape. Hotel officials activated emergency protocols as scores of police vehicles, as well as officials from the Army, the Navy and the National Guard responded to the 9-1-1 reports.
A Navy boat was sent out in search of the jet skis and the attackers, while the authorities secured the location and scoured the beach for clues. The unidentified victim was declared dead at the scene by paramedics.
On Thursday, the Quintana Roo Attorney General’s Office (FGE) released a statement identifying the victim as a Mexican national and known criminal who was involved with gangs connected to the illegal drug trade.
“A relationship has been established with the July 28 event this year in which a minor lost his life in the same area,” the FGE reported, declaring that Wednesday’s victim had driven the getaway jet ski after firing the bullet that killed the young Mexican tourist. The July incident — which was also declared as gang-related — happened behind the Riu Hotel Cancún, right next door to Wednesday’s shooting.
The FGE added that Wednesday’s victim was involved in the shooting of two people on a Cancún city bus on July 1.
The increasing presence in Cancún of organized crime gangs involved in drug trafficking, kidnapping and extortion has led the United States Department of State to raise 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 “exercise increased situational awareness” especially after dark, at Mexico’s Caribbean beach resorts like Cancún, Playa del Carmen and Tulum. A Sept. 6, 2024, Mexico Travel Advisory urged U.S. citizens to “exercise increased caution” when traveling to Quintana Roo.
With reports from Riviera Maya News, Por Esto! and El Financiero
