On Sunday, gunmen burst into an illegal cockfight and opened fire, killing 20 people and wounding four. Prosecutors in Mexico’s western state of Michoacan said that three women were among the dead after the attack near the town of Zinapecuaro. According to prosecutors, the attackers apparently planned the attack, and entered in a stolen truck owned by a snack food company.
“The snack food company truck arrived, and several armed people in camouflage clothing got out,” the prosecutors’ statement said. “At the same moment, a bus that was outside the building was used as a blockade,” apparently to prevent victims from escaping or calling for help.
“There are indications that the attack involved a confrontation between criminal groups,” according to the federal Public Safety Department said in a statement. It added that a team of federal investigators had been sent to the scene.
Michoacan has been the scene of a longstanding turf battle between local cartels and the Jalisco cartel, from the neighboringstate of Jalisco.
The fighting has included the use of bomb-dropping drones, landmines and home-made armored cars. Cockfighting, while illegal in many areas, remains a popular pastime in parts of Mexico, though the fights are usually held in secret.
