Just in Time for Spring Break: Cancun Torture Probe

Cancun, like Mexico, 'is at war,' says local editor
By Mary Papenfuss,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 2, 2009 6:26 AM CST
Just in Time for Spring Break: Cancun Torture Probe
US students sunbathe at Cancun.   (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

Those headed to Cancun for spring break might want to hold off just a tad before slathering on Mexican suntan oil—while authorities investigate torture and murder charges against the ousted local police chief. Mexico's out-of-control drug war is seeping into nearly every community in the nation—including one of the most popular vacationing destinations, reports the Los Angeles Times.

"The reality is that Cancun, like the rest of Mexico, is at war," said a local newspaper editor. "It's at war with the drug cartels." The booted police chief is under investigation for the recent torture-murder of a government anti-drug fighter. The upsurge in Mexican drug violence has frightened away hordes of tourists, but so far students appear to be sticking with plans to head to beaches south of the border, despite warnings from universities and the State Department.
(More spring break stories.)

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