MEXICO CITY (AP) — Ten workers at a bar in Mexico’s Caribbean resort of Playa del Carmen were fatally stabbed by four municipal inspectors sent to ensure compliance with local ordinances have been charged with, officials said Tuesday.
Playa del Carmen has long had a reputation for rowdy and dangerous bars, but the alleged incident at the city’s La Cueva bar on February 11 appears to have set a new bar for violence.
Assistant Secretary of Public Safety Luis Rodriguez Busio said on Tuesday that city inspectors went to the bar, which means “cave,” to inspect compliance with the city’s ordinances.
A bar employee allegedly stabbed the inspector to death, stuffed the corpse into a car, and left it elsewhere. Employees were mopping blood from the bar floor when police arrived.
Playa del Carmen has long had problems with illegal businesses, drug sales in shops, and seaside restaurants occupying beach zones.
In 2017, five people were killed, including two Canadians, an Italian and a Colombian, in a shooting at an electronic music festival at another bar in Playa del Carmen.
In 2019, seven men were killed in a shooting at another bar in Playa del Carmen.