Horror on Veracruz street - 35 bodies dumped downtown in broad daylight

Veracruz, a once hugely popular tourist port of call on Mexico's Gulf coast, is now as dangerous as Ciudad Juárez in the north and Acapulco on the west - in fact, probably more so, since many people have simply fled Juárez. Locals reported that yesterday about 5:00 p.m., just as afternoon rush hour traffic was peaking on a main downtown thoroughfare, a group of "luxury" SUVs pulled up and suddenly stopped all traffic, blocking the road. Such vehicles are commonly driven by drug cartel operatives. Following close behind the SUVs were a couple of livestock trucks, which parked in the middle of the street. The drivers got out, casually walked to the rear of the trucks, and abruptly dropped the gates. Thirty-five human corpses toppled to the pavement - a human slaughterhouse for the whole world to see, on one of the city´s most famous avenues. Blood, gore and body parts littered the road for hours while law enforcement officials did their thing. The disgusting photos are all over the world today.

Police say the victims - 23 men and 12 women - were involved in criminal activities themselves, and likely were killed by a rival cartel. Security in Veracruz is a joke, and the prosecution of those responsible for the almost daily atrocities there is a bigger joke. If you´re a journalist, it´s also a very good place to die. Read here for details on both.

According to updated press accounts, preliminary forensic examinations indicate most of the 35 victims were strangled or asphyxiated.