Outspoken Mexican mayor fatally shot in town centre during packed Day of the Dead event
Hundreds of residents filled the town’s streets during the deceased mayor's funeral procession.
A Mexican mayor has been fatally shot in front of dozens of witnesses during the Day Of The Dead festival.
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Carlos Alberto Manzo Rodriguez, 40, who was the mayor of the Uruapan municipality, Michoacan, was shot seven times in a packed town centre square as horrified bystanders watched on during a candlelit event.
He was taken to a nearby hospital and later pronounced dead, officials said.
Mr Rodriguez, an outspoken critic of organised crime, was killed with a weapon linked to two armed clashes between rival groups, officials said.
The shooter was killed at the scene while two other suspects were arrested, according to Mexico's security ministry.
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The late mayor had been under close protection since last December and was often seen wearing a bulletproof vest.
His security detail was strengthened in May amid heightened threats - with additional police and National Guard officers deployed.
On Sunday, hundreds of Uruapan locals wore black displaying pictures of Mr Rodríguez as they fill the town’s streets during his funeral procession.
They were heard chanting “Justice, justice. Out with Morena”, referring to Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum’s ruling party.
Ms Sheinbaum rallied her security cabinet on Sunday morning for an emergency meeting. In a statement on X, she condemned Mr Rodriguez’ “vile” killing.
“We reaffirm our commitment to deploy all the State’s efforts to achieve peace and security with zero impunity and full justice,” she said.
Michoacán is one of Mexico’s most crime-ridden states, with warring cartels and criminal groups vying for control of territory, drug-selling routes and other illegal operations.
A string of politicians and journalists have been killed in the state over the last few months and years amid the fighting.
In June, Salvador Bastidas, mayor of the municipality of Tacámbaro, also in Michoacán, was killed along with his bodyguard in the town’s Centro neighbourhood.