Gunman Wounds Cuban Man at Point-Blank Range in Playa del Carmen

Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo — An armed man fired at point-blank range at a Cuban national in Playa del Carmen on Monday night, leaving him with a bullet graze to the right side of his head, authorities said.

The attack took place near the Nicte-Há neighborhood. Emergency lines received multiple reports of gunfire at the intersection of Vicente Suárez street and 5ta Bis, prompting officers from the Municipal Police and the Public Security Department to deploy across the area.

When officers arrived, they found a man bleeding from the head. He was conscious and told them he was from Cuba. Witnesses said the victim was walking along the street when an unidentified man intercepted him and opened fire from close range.

The round did not penetrate the skull. According to the initial reports, it left only a graze on the right parietal region.

Paramedics from a local medical service treated the man at the scene, stemmed the bleeding and determined that the wound was not immediately life-threatening. He was then taken to a nearby hospital under heavy guard for specialized care.

Police sealed off the area with yellow tape to preserve ballistic evidence scattered on the pavement. Personnel from the State Prosecutor’s Office and forensic experts later arrived to process the scene, collect spent shell casings and formally open an investigation into attempted homicide.

Security forces launched a search operation and closed roads around Nicte-Há in an effort to locate the gunman, but no arrests had been reported as of Tuesday. Investigators are continuing their inquiries and reviewing surveillance camera footage in the area to establish a motive.