See Also: Fear Is Killing Tourism in Rocky Point, Mexico, Though Tourists Are Relatively Safe There -- For Now
See Also: Rocky Point Man Murdered in Hospital After Surviving 35 Rounds From Assassins At Start of Spring Break
Six people -- including one police officer-- were killed in a shootout last Thursday in Puerto Peñasco, a.k.a. Rocky Point.
The Sonoran city 200 miles south of Phoenix was once a very popular vacation destination for American families -- but violence has caused many to steer clear of Rocky Point. This latest episode of violence will only exacerbate the city's tattered image.
Gunfire erupted near a school close to the city's sports complex, Unidad Deportiva, according to local Mexican news sources cited in a report by the Tucson Sentinel. Police responded to the shots at approximately 6 p.m. Thursday evening and found three men dead.
The three men were suspected drug traffickers and had been engaged in a shootout with a rival group.
Police pursued the vehicle of the presumed rival traffickers, and a gunfight broke out. One of the suspects was killed. Three officers were hit, and one of them died.
As many as 12 people were injured and brought to local hospitals, the report says.
But, as New Times reported last year, Rocky Point hospitals can be dangerous places.
Assassins failed to kill a man in March of 2011 after letting off 35 rounds into his car during a high-speed chase, and the man was later murdered at the hospital while getting treated for his injuries.
