Gunmen Shoot Taqueria Employee as He Closed Up in Cancún

Cancún, Quintana Roo — Armed men shot an employee of a Cancún taqueria early Tuesday as he cleaned up before closing, the latest burst of violence at a food stand in the resort city.

The attack happened around 3 a.m. at a business called “Buen Provecho,” located on manzana 11 of Supermanzana 202, according to emergency services reports. Witnesses said the employee was doing closing-time cleaning when the gunmen arrived and opened fire.

Bystanders called 911, and officers from the Benito Juárez Municipal Police were the first to arrive. They cordoned off the scene while paramedics treated the wounded man and took him to Hospital General de Cancún “Jesús Kumate Rodríguez.”

Investigators learned the employee had been released from prison (Cereso) only a few weeks earlier and had been working at Buen Provecho for just under a month. Questioned by authorities, he offered no information about a possible motive or about who may have been responsible.

The State Prosecutor’s Office (FGE) is handling the case and will determine the causes of the attack and the whereabouts of the suspects.

Earlier fire at another Cancún taqueria

The shooting comes less than two weeks after a fire at the Los Tarascos taqueria on Avenida Huayacán. That blaze broke out on the morning of Tuesday, Oct. 20, at a commercial plaza that also houses other food businesses, including a Domino’s Pizza and a Sushi Go.

Firefighters from the Heroic Fire Department responded after the alarm was raised, but people in the area had already largely contained the flames. Crews finished extinguishing the fire and checked that employees and neighboring businesses were out of danger. No one was injured.

Images circulated after the fire showed several electrical appliances consumed by the flames, suggesting a possible short circuit, though the cause has not been established. Cancún authorities will determine through inspections and inquiries what sparked the blaze and whether anyone bears responsibility. Material losses still have to be tallied.