Mexican army hunt for gang who raped six tourists

The hooded gunmen who broke into a beachfront bungalow in Acapulco and raped six female Spanish tourists after restraining six men will be apprehended quickly, the authorities in the resort have insisted.

“Fortunately, we have strong evidence to lead us to those responsible for this reprehensible act,” Martha Garzon, attorney general for the state of Guerrero told Radio Fórmula.

As part of the manhunt, military checkpoints were set up on roads near the beach enclave of Playa Encantada, where the assaults took place.

The incident, which began when hooded gunmen rushed into the bungalow where the women were staying in the early hours of Monday, threatens to harm tourism in Acapulco and the country as a whole.

Only a week ago, Mexico’s Tourism Minister was at a holiday travel fair in Spain to reassure the industry that the country was safer than the international headlines about drugs gangs suggests.

The Mayor of Acapulco, Luis Walton, first issued a statement calling the attack “regrettable”, precisely because it would hurt the city’s image, and saying it “could have happened anywhere”. After the comments caused outrage in Spain, he apologised. The Mexican foreign ministry said it “reiterates its friendship ties with the Spanish people and expresses its solidarity”.

It appears the assailants forced two men who were in the garden to open the doors to the bungalow. They tied them and the other four men in the property up and raped the women.

A seventh woman, a Mexican, was spared. Experts think the assailants are associated with a drugs gang.