After being caught up in a shootout between gangs on Mexico’s Caribbean coast, Instagram influencer Anjali Ryot, 25, has been killed.
Another tourist who also died in the incident was named as German national Jennifer Henzold, 35, while three other tourists from Germany and the Netherlands were also injured in the horror incident, the district attorney’s office in Quintana Roo state said.
Ms Ryot had been celebrating her upcoming birthday at the La Malquerida bar in the popular holiday spot of Tulum, when she was caught up in the middle of a gun fight on Wednesday night at 10.40pm local time, October 20.
Paramedics declared her dead at the scene, while Ms Henzold was rushed to hospital where she later died
Initial investigations indicated that there was “an armed clash between criminal groups dedicated to the sale of drugs,” the district attorney’s office said.
Tulum Mayor Marciano Dzul Caamaltold reporters that the victims had no known links to the criminals.
“I strongly condemn the tragic events that occurred last night in Tulum in which two people lost their lives and three others were injured,” he tweeted on Thursday, October 21.
One of the alleged shooters, José Antonio Lira Pérez, 24, was arrested after being tracked by cameras to a medical facility, where he was being treated for a wound, local news sites reported.
Ms Ryot had a large online following and had been working for LinkedIn since July.
Tulum is one of the country’s top tourist destinations and is experiencing an increase in violence since becoming a popular international destination in recent years.