Mexico Resort Shooting Leaves 2 Canadian Tourists Dead, Another Wounded
Authorities said two Canadian tourists were killed, and another was wounded in a shooting at a resort in Mexico on Friday.
The latest brazen act of violence took place in Hotel Xcaret at Playa del Carmen in the state of Quintana Roo, ABC News reported. Playa del Carmen is a coastal resort town along the Yucatan Peninsula's Riviera Maya strip of Caribbean shoreline.
State authorities said all three victims were taken to a hospital, but two died. Quintana Roo state security secretary Lucio Hernández Gutiérrez tweeted that "the three guests are of Canadian origin." However, he did not identify any of the victims.
Deadly Encounter in Mexico Fueled by Disagreement
According to Hernández Gutiérrez, the incident began with a disagreement among hotel visitors. He shared several photos of a man in a sweatsuit in his Twitter account.
In one photo, the man was seen carrying a gun. In another, he appeared to be holding a mobile phone and a third photo shows the man sitting in a lounge chair.
According to the Quintana Roo state prosecutor's office, the suspect was also a guest, and the Canadian police informed them that he was a known criminal with a record of robbery, drug, and weapon charges.
Security forces are now seeking the suspect. Following claims that Canadian nationals had been affected, Canada's foreign ministry said in a statement that consular officials were contacting local authorities to gather further information.
No additional information could be disclosed to the public at the moment for concerns of privacy. Vicente Carrera, the director of Noticaribe, a local news website, who was in the hotel, said: "Police, army, and National Guard personnel filled the hotel and closed off entry."
"This is the first time a tourist has been the aggressor in a shooting," Carrera added.
READ NEXT: 21 People Killed in Mexico in Just 24 Hours Amid Bloody Turf War Between Mexican Drug Cartels
Foreign Tourists in Mexico's Riviera Maya Are Becoming Victims of Violence
In recent months, there had been a worrying spate of attacks on foreign tourists in Mexico's Riviera Maya region.
Mayan Riviera region is the crown jewel of the country's tourism industry, which includes resorts in Cancún, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum.
In early November, guests at the Hyatt Ziva Riviera Cancún hotel in Puerto Morelos rushed for safety when 15 gunmen from a gang opened fire on rivals, leaving two suspected drug dealers dead.
Although one tourist was reported to have been hit in the head with a weapon, no other tourists were seriously injured in the incident.
In late October, two foreign tourists were killed after they were caught in the apparent crossfire of rival drug dealers in Tulum, a beach town about 80 miles south of Cancun.
Following these events, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador dispatched roughly 1,500 members of the National Guard to the region to increase security.
According to a National Statistics Institute survey, gangs fighting for control of territory in Mexican resorts have usually avoided tourist areas.
However, the millions of tourists who visit Quintana Roo each year were reportedly driving a strong demand for illegal drugs that was fuelling the violence.
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Jess Smith
WATCH: Mexico Resort Hotel Shooting Near Playa Del Carmen Leaves 1 Canadian Citizen Dead, 2 Wounded L ABC7 - From ABC7