12 Shot Dead in Mexico Bar Attack in Gang-Plagued State

Members of the National Guard stand guard meters away from the bar where 12 people were killed by an armed group which opened fire on customers and staff, in Irapuato, state of Guanajuato, Mexico, on Oct. 15, 2022. Mario Armas/AFP via Getty Images

MEXICO CITY—Unidentified gunmen opened fire in a bar in the central Mexican city of Irapuato on Saturday evening, shooting dead six women and six men, local authorities said.

Three people were injured in the attack in the south of Irapuato, the city government said in a statement, adding that security officials were trying to track down the assailants.

The motive behind the shooting was not immediately clear. An initial statement by the city had put the death toll at 11.

Members of the National Guard stand guard meters away from the bar where 12 people were killed by an armed group which opened fire on customers and staff, in Irapuato, state of Guanajuato, Mexico, on Oct. 15, 2022. Mario Armas/AFP via Getty Images

Guanajuato, a major manufacturing hub and production site for many of the world’s top carmakers, has been convulsed in recent years by brutal turf wars between rival drug gangs.

On Sept. 21, gunmen shot dead 10 people in an attack at a bar in the Guanajuato town of Tarimoro, about 60 miles (96 kilometers) southeast of Irapuato.