| Follow up to this story of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel raid from a few days ago. |
Officials and witnesses described a choreographed massacre in which assailants in military uniforms arrived just after 10.30pm on Sunday night and opened fire with assault rifles at the crowds of primarily middle-aged men.
Two small trucks, one of them branded with the logo for Sabritas, a potato chip company, were used to block the highway leading to the cockfighting arena.
Video filmed by witnesses nearby captured the sound of machine gun fire, which could be heard several miles away.
Photos leaked to social media showed the aftermath of the massacre, with barriers and chairs knocked over, and bodies scattered inside and outside the building.
Mexican police told local media they found 19 bodies — 16 men and three women. Another victim died en route to the hospital. More than 100 shells from 7.62 caliber rifles littered the ground.
The police also seized 15 cars that were on the scene.
Mexican army and national guard troops were deployed on Monday morning to capture the assailants, but it remained unclear which of the region’s many organized crime groups they belonged to.
Cockfighting, while illegal in many areas, remains a popular pastime in parts of Mexico, though the fights between roosters are usually held clandestinely.
Las Tinajas is a tiny pueblo of about 10 streets, close to Michoacán’s eastern borders with two other states, Guanajuato and Estado de México.
Related:
Michoacán: 2022-02-14 U.S. Stops All Mexican Avocado Imports Over Cartel Threats
Michoacán: 2021-04-26 PHOTOS: Mexican Cartels Weaponize Drones to Drop IEDs
Michoacán: 2021-02-18 There are 75 malicious homicides per day in February
Michoacán: 2022-02-14 U.S. Stops All Mexican Avocado Imports Over Cartel Threats
Michoacán: 2021-04-26 PHOTOS: Mexican Cartels Weaponize Drones to Drop IEDs
Michoacán: 2021-02-18 There are 75 malicious homicides per day in February
Related:
Jalisco New Generation Cartel: 2022-03-28 Tinajas, Mexico coroner's office gets a workout.
Jalisco New Generation Cartel: 2022-03-01 Horrifying moment Mexican drug cartel thugs pull mourners from a wake, line them up against the wall and shoot them - killing up to 17
Jalisco New Generation Cartel: 2022-02-15 Cartel cannibals! Mexican drug lords force new members to kill rivals and eat their HEARTS
Jalisco New Generation Cartel: 2022-03-28 Tinajas, Mexico coroner's office gets a workout.
Jalisco New Generation Cartel: 2022-03-01 Horrifying moment Mexican drug cartel thugs pull mourners from a wake, line them up against the wall and shoot them - killing up to 17
Jalisco New Generation Cartel: 2022-02-15 Cartel cannibals! Mexican drug lords force new members to kill rivals and eat their HEARTS
