MEXICO CITY, Oct 21, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Armed assailants gunned down the mayor of a central Mexican town on Monday, authorities said, the latest killing of a local official in a country where gang violence is common.

Gunmen shot Pisaflores mayor Miguel Bahena on the street and fled, local police said, adding that his body showed at least five bullet wounds.

Bahena's Green Party expressed in a statement its "profound dismay" at his "cowardly murder," urging authorities to capture the attackers.

Mexico, plagued by drug-related violence for nearly two decades, has seen numerous local politicians assassinated in recent years.

In June, armed men stormed a mayor's office in southern Mexico, killing her and a staff member. The following day, another mayor was murdered in the country's west along with her husband.

In May, two close aides two Mexico City's mayor were gunned down in the capital. Authorities have since arrested at least 13 suspects in the case.