Numerous shots are fired and several people are injured in a bar in a popular Mexican resort. It hits a man from Mainz particularly hard: he is now in mortal danger. Few details are known, drug gangs may have played a role.
A 32-year-old man from Mainz was shot multiple times in Mexico. According to the police in Mainz, the Federal Criminal Police Office informed the public prosecutor's office and the police about the attempted homicide after a corresponding message from Mexico. The man is said to have been seriously injured by several bullets last Sunday. Details are not known.
The public prosecutor's office has initiated investigations against unknown persons, a so-called mirror investigation of the investigations being conducted in Mexico, and is in contact with the Mexican authorities.
According to the Attorney General of the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, the shots were fired in a bar in the resort town of Playa del Carmen on the Caribbean coast. Three men were injured, including the German. His health is stable. According to Mexican media reports, he was initially in mortal danger with only "a low probability of surviving". He was therefore hit by five bullets and, according to other media reports, had emergency surgery.
The so-called Riviera Maya with the towns of Cancún, Playa del Carmen and Tulum is a popular tourist region. For a long time, the area was considered quite safe by Mexican standards. Recently, however, there has been an increase in fighting between hostile gangs in the region. In October last year, two holidaymakers from Germany and India were killed in a shootout between rival gangs at a bar in Tulum. The government then moved a National Guard unit to the region to better protect tourists.
Drug crime and gangs may also have played a role in the recent incident in Playa del Carmen. Drugs were found in the bar, writes the "Cancun Sun", citing a Mexican official. And further: "It is currently unknown whether either victim was involved in drug crime or simply got involved with drug criminals during his stay in Playa Del Carmen."
Mexico has been suffering from a wave of violence for years. Last year, an average of almost 100 homicides per day were registered in the Latin American country. Around 100,000 people are also believed to have disappeared. Criminal gangs are responsible for most of the violence. Most crimes are never solved.
