Organized crime-related homicides soar in Mexico

Murders attributed to organized crime broke a record in August at 2,290, a 77.8% rise over last year. It's the third month in a row with over 2,000 such murders — there were 2,264 in July and 2,249 in June. With 240 murders, Guanajuato topped the list of the most violent state. One of the year’s worst massacres was an attack on a nightclub in Coatzacoalcos that left 30 dead and 13 injured. On August 8 the Jalisco New Generation Cartel left 19 bodies hanging from an overpass in Uruapan.

A recent gun battle in Tepalcatepec between the CJNG and a rival, Juan José “El Abuelo” (The Grandfather) Farías Álvarez, left nine dead.