Revealed
SUN, SEA AND SLAUGHTER
MEXICAN resorts popular with Brit tourists are danger zones blighted by drug cartel murders — as the country battles an astronomical death toll usually seen in WARS.
Mexico is suffering its worst murder rate on record, with over 500 murders alone last year on the coast near Cancun, where a lifeguard was gunned down just yesterday.
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While British people have been staying clear of resorts such as Tunisia and Egypt, following a spate of terrorist attacks, the shocking crime rate in Mexico seems not to deter them.
Last year Mexican authorities recorded 33,341 murder investigations across the country — the highest ever and 33 per cent more than three years ago.
A death toll of this magnitude - with a majority of the killings committed away from tourist spots - is usually seen in major conflicts.
Compare this to the total recorded last year in the UK, which has half the population but only has 726 murder victims.
In fact the situation in Mexico is so bad the government has called the army in.
But despite troops patrolling the cities and resorts, extortion and murder are rife and many businesses have been forced to close.
SUN, SEA AND SLAUGHTER
The Yucatán Peninsula is best known for its beaches, numerous resorts and nightlife all of which are a magnet for British sunseekers after a bargain package holiday.
In fact hundreds of thousands jet out there each year.
But these resorts have become a battle ground for drug cartels who are fighting to control the region.
According to reports, in the area containing the party beach resort of Playa del Carmen last year the body count was 130 in one year.
In Cancun alone there was 540 murders last year.
In one 36-hour spell in April last year NINE PEOPLE were murdered there.
Four months later, eight bodies were found after a cartel murder spree - with two of the victims dismembered and found in separate plastic bags.
It is believed they were tortured, then burned before being chopped up into pieces.
RESTAURANT AND BARS TARGETED BY KILLERS
But while many of the murders are between criminals, tourists and those working in the tourism industry are increasingly caught up in the slaughter.
In May two gunmen stormed a restaurant and opened fire, slaying five tourists and injuring 11 others. Eateries and bars are common targets for extortionists.
It is not just shootings. In February last year a ferry was bombed injuring more than two dozen.
And on Monday kids on holiday in Tulum with their families were left “vomiting and suffering from panic attacks” after witnessing the horrific shooting of a lifeguard.
Becky Dullaway, 50, from Hasting, was on a family holiday with her husband, two daughters and five grandchildren, told Sun Online: "I screamed at the children to get out of the pool and my daughter fall over, cutting her leg open.
"I was terrified it was a terror attack and all I could think about was what happened in Tunisia."
The small town of 38,000 people sees about 18 murders each year.
Foreign Office travel warning to tourists
Drug-related violence in Mexico has increased over recent years, confirms the Foreign Office.
The violence is concentrated in specific areas, and some regions are almost completely spared.
Make sure you research your destination thoroughly before packing your bags.
Politically-motivated violence can also occur, with a problems in Guerrero and Mexico City.
The govt. works to protect major tourist destinations like Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Cozumel, Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta and Nuevo Vallarta.
These areas have mostly not seen the levels of drug-related violence and crime experienced elsewhere in Mexico.
However, since 2017 there have been a number of shootings and other incidents of violence in these areas, including in locations popular with tourists.
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