A gunman killed a Canadian tourist and wounded six other people on Monday during an attack at Mexico’s famed Teotihuacan archaeological site, authorities said.
The attacker later took his own life after opening fire at the heavily visited pre-Aztec site in central Mexico, according to a security official.
The shooting occurred on the Pyramid of the Moon, a 45-metre (nearly 150-foot) structure that visitors are permitted to climb via steep volcanic stone steps.
Six people were injured by gunfire and taken to nearby hospitals, including a Canadian woman, a Colombian woman and her child, a Brazilian national, and two Americans.
In addition, seven others sustained injuries in the ensuing panic as visitors fled the scene. They were treated on site after the assailant, identified as Julio César Jasso Ramírez of Mexico — opened fire.
The midday attack shocked tourists at one of Mexico’s most popular pre-Hispanic landmarks, coming less than two months before the 2026 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Mexico, the United States, and Canada.
AFPTV footage showed a body wrapped in a white sheet being carried down the pyramid steps.
State authorities recovered a firearm, a knife, and unused ammunition at the scene and evacuated visitors from the archaeological complex.
Dating back more than 2,000 years, the ancient city near Mexico City attracted over 1.8 million visitors in 2025, according to tourism officials.
Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand described the attack on social media platform X as “a horrific act of gun violence.”
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum called for a full investigation and said federal personnel had been deployed to assist at the site.
“What happened today in Teotihuacan deeply pains us,” she wrote on X.
‘Send security’
Located about 50 kilometres (31 miles) from Mexico City, Teotihuacan is renowned for its pyramids and the Avenue of the Dead, drawing millions of domestic and international tourists each year.
Federal security forces, including police and the National Guard, were dispatched to the area following the attack.
Videos circulating on social media showed the gunman firing intermittently from a pistol partway up the Pyramid of the Moon, while tourists took cover or fled down the steps. AFP has not independently verified the footage.
“A person is opening fire on us, take care friends, send security,” a voice is heard saying in one video.
Other clips show authorities securing the area, which was later cordoned off with crime-scene tape as investigators examined the site.
Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site of “outstanding universal value,” Teotihuacan’s monuments were built between the first and seventh centuries during the pre-Hispanic Classic period.
Mexico’s nearly 200 archaeological sites are major tourist attractions. While accidents have occurred, this is the first reported armed attack at such a site in decades.
Although Mexico continues to grapple with drug-related violence, mass shootings in public tourist destinations remain relatively rare, especially compared with the United States.
The country expects more than 5.5 million visitors for the upcoming World Cup in June.
American tourist Anna Durmont, a 37-year-old art historian, said she was approaching the pyramid when emergency vehicles arrived.
“It actually felt extremely calm,” she said, noting she did not hear gunfire at first.
“It was very measured. The park was full of souvenir sellers and they hadn’t left. It wasn’t clear to us until we got closer that there was a serious emergency.”
AFP
