10 killed, 5 decapitated in Mexico violence

TORREAN – Five people were decapitated and five others were killed in a spate of violent incidents in the Mexican city of Torrean, a justice official announced Saturday.

“The five human heads were found in various places in the city,” the official said, noting that the first skull was found on Friday night and the fifth found in the early hours of Saturday.

The bodies of the victims, all of whom were linked to organized crime according to the official, have not yet not found.

Five other men were killed in various acts of violence, the official added, with four of them gunned down and the fifth being stabbed to death.

Torrean is the largest city in Coahuila state, which borders Texas and has been the scene of constant clashes between drug gangs fighting for control of routes used to smuggle narcotics and immigrants into the United States.

An estimated 50,000 people have been killed in violence linked to Mexico’s drug trade since 2006, when President Felipe Calderon launched a crackdown on the criminal gangs blamed for the slaughter.