A man executed outside a five-star Cancun resort has been identified as a local drug dealer involved in the fatal shooting of a 12-year-old boy found dead on a beach next to the hotel in July.
The victim, a 30-year-old Mexican national, was shot outside the RIU Palace Las Americas hotel on Wednesday afternoon.
Cancun police reports indicated that the gunmen arrived at Caracol Beach on jet skis and fired four shots at the rival drug dealer, who was walking near the pool.
The suspects, wearing black clothing and orange life jackets, fled towards the Caribbean Sea.
Hotel staff provided medical assistance to the victim, who died before the arrival of paramedics.
A 30-year-old alleged drug dealer was shot dead Wednesday on a beach in front of the RIU Palace Las Americas hotel in the Mexican resort of Cancun. The Quintana Roo Attorney General’s Office said the victim was involved in the July 28 shooting on a beach next to the RIU Cancun that left a 12-year-old boy dead.
The RIU Palace Las Americas hotel said in a statement that employees provided medical assistance to the 30-year-old alleged drug dealer, who died before paramedics arrived
The Quintana Roo Attorney General’s Office said in a statement that the victim was riding one of two jet skis that approached the shores of Caracol Beach, where they were confronted by rival drug dealers.
One of the bullets hit the stomach of 12-year-old Santiago, who was sitting on a beach chair a few meters away from the RIU hotel in Cancun. The child, born in Mexico City, was rushed to an area hospital, where he died.
Two drug dealers from the rival groups were arrested during an operation on August 4.
Footage of the shooting Wednesday showed concerned guests walking around the lobby of RIU Palace Las Americas.
A man on holiday from Chile told Chilean television channel TL13 that he was swimming with a group when the suspects started shooting.
“We were in the water, there were probably ten Chileans in the sea and suddenly a jet ski arrived,” he recalls. “He stops on the dock, picks someone up, that person runs away and someone comes from behind and they shoot him from that dock. And he died there, in the sea.’
Mexican authorities linked the killing of a 30-year-old man at the RIU Palace Las Americas hotel to a dispute between rival drug dealers
The victim was confirmed by the Quintana Roo Attorney General’s Office as a 30-year-old Mexican national
The Chilean man said the mood at the resort was normal about an hour after the dealer was executed.
‘We all ran into the sand. That happened about an hour ago, but now things are getting back to normal,” he said. “They let us get out to get stuff for those of us who had something here. The police came first, the army arrived, everything was very busy.’
In an email to DailyMail.com, a hotel spokesperson said none of the guests were injured in the incident.
“Our team immediately activated safety and emergency protocols and worked closely with municipal and national authorities to provide timely assistance to the injured person, who is not a guest of RIU,” the spokesperson said.
“We continue to communicate and fully cooperate with the relevant authorities to provide support in any way necessary to ensure the safety of all our guests and employees,” they said. “We reiterate our commitment to the safety and well-being of our guests, employees and the community.”
The US Department of State lists the state of Quintana Roo, home to Cancun and Tulum, another tourist hotspot, at a level two advisory level – meaning tourists should take extra caution when visiting.
“While Mexican authorities strive to protect the country’s major resorts and tourist destinations, those areas have not been immune to the types of violence and crime experienced elsewhere in Mexico,” the alert said.
‘In some parts of Mexico, local police response times are often slow. Moreover, filing a police report can be time-consuming. The increased level of cartel-related violence has resulted in territorial disputes and targeted killings, injuring or killing innocent bystanders.”