Carlos Alberto Manzo Rodriguez, mayor of Uruapan in western Mexico’s Michoacan state, was shot and killed Saturday night during a Day of the Dead celebration in the city’s historic center. The attack occurred around 8:00 pm during the Festival of Candles, a traditional event organized by local authorities as part of Day of the Dead festivities.
Mexico’s Security Cabinet confirmed that two people involved in the incident were arrested, and one of the assailants was killed. Manzo had just finished taking photos with children and was lighting candles when a gunman approached and opened fire at close range. The mayor received multiple gunshot wounds to the abdomen and arm, and died shortly after being transported to Fray Juan de San Miguel hospital.
The assailant fired seven times at Manzo, and a 9 millimeter firearm was recovered from the scene. A municipal councilor known as Victor Saladitas and one of the mayor’s security escorts were also injured in the attack. Video footage circulating on social media captured the moment panic erupted as crowds fled the plaza following the gunfire.
Manzo, who took office in September 2024 as an independent candidate under the movement called La Sombreriza, was known for his confrontational stance against organized crime. He habitually wore a bulletproof vest weighing over 10 kilograms and was accompanied by an escort of eight members from civil and national guard forces. His direct approach to denouncing and combating organized crime in his locality earned him the nickname El Bukele of Michoacan.
Before his death, Manzo had repeatedly called for federal government intervention to confront crime in the region. In a recent interview, he expressed frustration that neither President Claudia Sheinbaum nor Security Secretary Omar Harfuch had visited Uruapan despite his appeals for help. He had also requested that municipal police be equipped with military grade weapons to match the firepower of criminal organizations.
In September, Manzo canceled Independence Day celebrations in Uruapan for security reasons and activated a code red following violent incidents, including the August capture of alleged drug trafficker Rene Belmonte, known as El Rino. Just days before his assassination, journalist Mauricio Cruz Solis was killed in Uruapan on October 29 after conducting a live interview with Manzo about a recent market fire.
Michoacan is an important producer of avocados for export, mainly to the United States, as well as other fruits like lemons. The state has been plagued for years by violence linked to organized crime, whose gangs frequently extort producers. Drug trafficking cartels operating in Michoacan include the powerful Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion and La Nueva Familia Michoacana, both designated as foreign terrorist organizations by United States President Donald Trump in February.
Michoacan Governor Alfredo Ramirez Bedolla condemned what he called a cowardly attack, stating that the state’s security secretary and National Guard were coordinating security actions in the municipality. The Security Cabinet stated that this crime will not go unpunished and that authorities are maintaining patrols to guarantee public safety.
The assassination of Manzo adds to a disturbing pattern of violence against Mexican political leaders. Just days earlier, farmer representative Bernardo Bravo, who had spoken against gang extortion, was shot dead in the same state. In October, the mayor of Pisaflores in central Mexico was gunned down by armed assailants. In June, attackers stormed a mayor’s office in southern Mexico, killing the mayor and a staff member, while another mayor and her husband were murdered the following day in the country’s west.
Mexico has endured nearly two decades of drug related violence, with thousands of deaths linked to cartel activity. The killing of Manzo underscores the escalating insecurity and impunity facing local officials who take public stands against organized crime in regions dominated by powerful drug trafficking organizations.
