Family members of one of the victims told NBC 7’s Dave Summers he was caught in the middle of a dispute between criminal organization.
The U.S. State Department confirmed Tuesday three U.S. citizens were among the 10 people killed in a shootout during an off-road racing event in Baja California, Mexico.
The identities of the three Americans were not released but the family of Roberto Isaias “Tito” Ayala told NBC 7 the San Diego man and father to a four-year-old girl was a bystander when the shooting between two groups broke out at the small town about 115 miles south of the Tijuana, Mexico, border on May 20, 2023.
The shooting began when a black van with gunmen started firing at several parked cars in the off-road vehicle race called "Cachanillazo," Mexican authorities said. The state prosecutor’s office said there was evidence of crossfire suggesting it was a confrontation between members of organized crime groups. State prosecutor Ricardo Iván Carpio said that the black van was found to have “perforations from gunshots and traces of blood inside.”
Videos posted on social media showed heavy shooting at the rally in San Vicente, which is about 50 miles south of Ensenada, and at least three bodies lying on the ground. Another nine people were injured in the violence, Mexican authorities reported.
A Baja California prosecutor said more than 250 shots were fired from at least 13 weapons, including handguns and rifles.
An organized crime leader who was among the group that had pulled off for gas was the target of the attack, according to the prosecutor.
A San Vicente law enforcement officer said there were no injuries to town members.
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No arrests have been made nor have the identities of the victims been released.
