Mara Salvatrucha Leaves 7 Dead in a Guatemalan Hotel

On Tuesday night, the Mara Salvatrucha gang attacked the Barrio 18 gang in a hotel on El Semillero beach, in the department of Escuintla, killing 4 adults and three children.

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According to the National Civil Police's first investigations, the victims were members of the Barrio 18 gang and the massacre was motivated by a territorial dispute. Among those victims are Yonathan Siritit Vasquez (aka Elon) and his brother Luis Isaias (aka el Guicho).

The Siritit Vasquez were brothers of the leader of a hitmen group, Auner Gustavo (aka El Pupa), who was found dead inside the Pavon prison a few weeks ago.

According to local media, the victims were in the pool celebrating a robbery they had recently committed. A government spokesman mentioned that investigations are being conducted by the Department of Crimes Against Life and the National Division Against Gang Development.

Once the execution was carried out, the four gang members escaped in a black vehicle, without being detected or detained.

Currently, Guatemala is one of the Latin America's most violent countries. According to the National Institute of Forensic Sciences (INACIF), homicides increased from 3,500 in 2020 to 4,078 in 2021. So far this year, murders have still increased by 10 percent.