Two rehabilitation centers for people with addiction problems were attacked by gunfire on the afternoon of Sunday, November 1, in different areas of Mazatlán, Sinaloa. The attacks, which occurred within a few hours of each other, left three people dead and five injured, according to initial reports.
- First attack: around 12:30 p.m. in the Felipe Ángeles neighborhood; two inmates died and one more was injured.
- Second attack: at about 4:50 p.m. in the Flores Magón neighborhood; one person died at the scene and four were wounded.
- No confirmed link: authorities have not established a connection between the two incidents nor reported any detentions.
The first attack, in the Felipe Ángeles neighborhood
The first incident occurred around 12:30 p.m. at a property set up as an addiction treatment center, located in the Felipe Ángeles neighborhood, near the intersection of Mayor J. Osuna and Acapulco streets.
According to initial reports, armed men traveling on motorcycles arrived at the facility and opened fire on the people at the entrance. Two inmates, identified as Jesús, 40, and Kevin, 25, were killed in the attack.
A third person was injured and taken to a hospital for medical attention. Municipal Police officers went to the site after a report to the 911 emergency number, while paramedics assisted the victims. Personnel from the Sinaloa State Attorney General's Office carried out the corresponding procedures to gather evidence and establish the circumstances of the attack.
Second attack, in the Flores Magón neighborhood
Less than five hours later, at around 4:50 p.m., a second armed attack was reported against another rehabilitation center, this time in the Flores Magón neighborhood. The facility was located on Azucena Street, between Madre Selva and Jazmín, near some sports fields where a soccer game was being played.
Initial reports indicated that armed men fired from a moving vehicle at a group of inmates who were on the street in front of the building, watching the match.
One person died at the scene and four others were injured. During the attack, some inmates ran to escape the gunfire, but two of them fell wounded about two blocks from the facility.
Paramedics from Bomberos Veteranos and the Mexican Red Cross took the injured to hospitals for medical care. After the shooting, the remaining inmates were evacuated and some left the area on their own. The area was secured by municipal and state police, who waited for Forensic Investigation personnel from the Attorney General's Office to process the scene and remove the body. As of the initial reports, no detentions had been reported for this second attack.
Open investigation and other violent incidents
Both facilities were attacked on the same afternoon in different parts of Mazatlán. However, so far authorities have not confirmed a link between the two attacks nor presented a hypothesis about the motives. In the first case, the attackers allegedly arrived on motorcycles, while in the second they fired from a moving vehicle—differences that should be considered during the investigations.
Mexican Army personnel deployed search operations to locate those responsible after the attacks, while ministerial staff began proceedings to build the investigation files. The combined toll was three people killed and five injured at the two rehabilitation centers, and it has not been reported whether either facility had received prior threats or whether its managers had a history of complaints.
The state Attorney General's Office must determine whether the inmates were attacked because of their presence at those locations or whether the attacks were directed at specific individuals inside the buildings.
The violent day also left two more fatalities in the Cima Horizonte subdivision, north of Mazatlán. Armed men on motorcycles shot at the occupants of a white Hyundai Grand i10 parked on Cima de las Rocas street. After the attack, one of the men was found dead in the passenger seat, while the driver managed to open the door and fell onto the roadway. Paramedics arrived but confirmed both had died from gunshot wounds. The victims had not been identified and no detentions had been reported.
With this double homicide, the attacks on the two rehabilitation centers and the assault on the car's occupants, Mazatlán accumulated five people killed and five injured on November 1. There is no information to establish a link among the three episodes. The progress of the investigations and any eventual confirmation of a connection between the attacks will be crucial to gauge the scope of the violence recorded that day in the port.