A Mexican mayor known for his outspoken stance against drug cartels was shot dead in front of dozens of people during Day of the Dead celebrations in the city square of Uruapan, Michoacán, on Saturday, November 1, 2025. Carlos Alberto Manzo Rodríguez, 40, was gunned down while attending a candlelit ceremony at Immaculate Church, despite being under close protection from municipal police and National Guard officers.
The attack occurred late Saturday night in the town’s historic center as residents and tourists gathered for the traditional festivities. Manzo Rodríguez was shot seven times by an unidentified gunman, according to Federal Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch. The mayor was rushed to a hospital where he later died, state prosecutor Carlos Torres Piña confirmed. A city councilman, a municipal police officer, and another city employee sustained injuries in the assault.
Video footage shared on social media captured the chaos as gunshots rang out among crowds enjoying the celebration, surrounded by hundreds of lit candles, marigold flowers, and skull decorations. People in costumes and painted faces scattered for cover as municipal police officers engaged the attackers. One of the mayor’s bodyguards shot the primary gunman dead at the scene, while two other suspects were arrested.
Defense Secretary Ricardo Trevilla Trejo explained how the assassins penetrated the security perimeter during a press conference Monday. He indicated that the National Guard provided security at the periphery of the event, while Manzo Rodríguez had chosen municipal police officers he personally knew and trusted for close protection. The defense secretary noted that participants at the quasi-religious event were not searched or screened, and that the mayor frequently went out in public despite the risks.
The weapon used in the attack was linked to two previous armed clashes between rival criminal groups operating in the region, García Harfuch revealed. He emphasized that there was no indication the mayor’s security detail had connections to organized crime, noting that one of the officers killed the gunman and they were the ones who reacted during the attack. The alleged assassin carried no identification, though surveillance footage showed he may have stayed at a local hotel and visited several business establishments before the shooting.
Manzo Rodríguez had become increasingly vocal about the violence plaguing Michoacán in recent months. Just over a month before his death, the cowboy hat-wearing mayor called on residents to take up arms against drug traffickers if the federal government failed to stop widespread murder and extortion. He told Grupo Formula that authorities were releasing detained criminals who then returned to illegal activities. According to Manzo, “I don’t want to be just another mayor on the list of those executed, those whose lives have been taken from them.”
The mayor, nicknamed by some as “the Mexican Bukele” in reference to El Salvador President Nayib Bukele’s tough security policies, had been under protection since December 2024, just three months after taking office. His security was reinforced in May with additional municipal police and 14 National Guard officers. He won the mayor’s office through an independent movement after previously serving as a Morena Party legislator.
On Sunday, hundreds of Uruapan residents dressed in black took to the streets for a funeral procession, holding photographs of their slain mayor. At the head of the procession, a man led Manzo Rodríguez’s black horse with one of the mayor’s signature hats placed on the saddle. A group of musicians dressed in black followed, playing mariachi songs. Mourners chanted “Justice, justice. Out with Morena,” referencing President Claudia Sheinbaum’s ruling party. Dozens of police and military officers guarded the narrow streets during the ceremony.
President Sheinbaum condemned what she called the “vile assassination” of Manzo Rodríguez and canceled public events Sunday out of respect for his family. She pledged to use all the power of the state to bring his killers to justice. However, she downplayed criticism of her administration’s handling of cartel violence, characterizing it as part of a media campaign funded by conservative critics. She defended her approach, stating that militarization and the war on drug traffickers had not worked and led to violence in Michoacán.
Public Safety Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch stated that while it was obvious the attack was targeted, investigators have not determined who ordered the killing. He mentioned that the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, the Viagras, and other organized criminal groups operate actively in Uruapan. The Michoacán Attorney General’s Office is leading the investigation, with federal authorities ready to intervene if requested.
The assassination sparked protests at the state capital of Morelia, where demonstrators vandalized government buildings. Additional protests were planned as Mexican news outlets questioned whether the government or drug cartels control large areas of the country. Manzo Rodríguez is the seventh mayor killed in Michoacán since 2022. The state remains one of Mexico’s most violent, serving as a battleground for various cartels and criminal groups fighting for control of territory, drug distribution routes, and other illicit activities.
In recent months, Manzo Rodríguez had publicly appealed to President Sheinbaum on social media for help confronting the cartels. He accused Michoacán Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla and state police of corruption. His killing followed the June murder of Salvador Bastidas, mayor of the municipality of Tacámbaro, also in Michoacán, who was killed along with his bodyguard. In October 2024, journalist Mauricio Cruz Solís was shot in Uruapan shortly after interviewing Manzo Rodríguez.
