News | Feb 14, 2024 06:38 PM EST

Mexican Authorities Arrest 6 Men After Harrowing Machete Murders In Cancun

By Asheea Smith

Members of the National Guard (Guardia Nacional de México) patrol the center of Tulum (file picture from November 10, 2021). According to security reports three recent military attacks on Mexico's top tourist beaches reveal a new war for territory involving Mexican gangs, Russians and local politicians. On Wednesday, December 08, 2021, in Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico.

(Photo : (Photo by Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images)) Members of the National Guard (Guardia Nacional de México) patrol the center of Tulum (file picture from November 10, 2021). According to security reports three recent military attacks on Mexico's top tourist beaches reveal a new war for territory involving Mexican gangs, Russians and local politicians. On Wednesday, December 08, 2021, in Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico.

A drug gang at a holiday hotspot posing as a "tourist agency" has been apprehended by Mexican authorities in connection to the violent murder of at least eight people in Cancun.

On Monday, six men allegedly linked to the crime were taken into custody as prosecutors claim they used a machete to butcher and dismember five victims in addition to burying three others in a shallow grave.

The bodies were found dismembered in the back of a taxi on Jan. 29. The Attorney General's office for the state of Quintana Roo has not yet identified the victims.

According to Fox News, they have identified the suspects; Cristian N, Yobani N, Pablo N, Raul N, Ernesto Alonso N, Rosario N., and two additional unnamed minors.

Mexican authorities confiscated cocaine, marijuana, crack, two military firearms, the motorcycles allegedly used to transport the dismembered bodies, as well as two vehicles — one of which was reported stolen.

The business the suspects allegedly ran was merely a front for illegal activity, including extortion, vehicle theft, and homicide, protected by a string of taxis and minors that acted as lookout for authorities.

23 others were arrested on charges in relation to a front "tourist agency," serving as a cover for drug sales.

According to officials, a drug raid over the span of four days targeted drug stores in Tulum, Playa del Carmen, and Cancun, which were previously accused of selling pills including Percocet, Adderall, and oxycodone without prescriptions.

(Photo : Getty Images) Sign at Organ Pipe National Monument, near the US and Mexico border, warns visitors to be aware of drug cartels and illegal immigration in the area

The State Department sent a warning to travelers regarding counterfeit pills in Mexico, which were often laced with Fentanyl.

The illegal drug cartels continue to be a source of ongoing violence and danger for tourists visiting the state of Quintana Roo.

Two tourists, a German, and a California travel blogger were slain after being caught in the crossfire of two rival gangs in the middle of a restaurant.

Last year, the US State Department issued a travel advisory, alerting travelers to exercise increased awareness — especially after dark — even on beach resorts in places like Cancun, Tulum, and Playa Del Carmen.