City mayor in Mexico killed less than a week after he took office

The mayor of a state capital in southern Mexico has been killed just one week after he took office, officials said on Sunday.

Alejandro Arcos was sworn in last Monday as mayor of Chilpancingo, a city so violent that a drug gang openly staged a demonstration, hijacked a government armoured car and took police hostage in 2023 to win the release of arrested suspects.

Chilpancingo is the capital of Guerrero state, where Acapulco is located.

The state prosecutors’ office issued a statement Sunday confirming Arcos had been killed, but provided no details.

Local media reported that Arcos was decapitated, but there has been no official confirmation. Photos circulated on messaging app WhatsApp depicting a severed head on top of a pick-up truck, appearing to be that of Arco.

Alejandro Moreno, the national leader of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, lamented Arcos’ killing and said the newly installed secretary of the city council had also been murdered three days earlier.