An Argentine beach club manager was shot dead in Mexico's Quintana Roo state on Tuesday afternoon, local authorities said.

Quintana Roo Attorney General Oscar Montes de Oca said Wednesday that Federico Mazzoni, the manager of the Mamita's beach club in Playa del Carmen, was shot twice in the head by two gunmen, Buenos Aires Times reported.

"There are two guys, apparently from a local criminal structure, who enter [the club], talk to the victim, take him to the bathrooms, and there they kill him," Montes de Oca told Milenio TV.

According to Mexico News Daily, Mazzoni's body was discovered at around 6 p.m. Images captured by security cameras showed that the gunmen fled on a jet ski after shooting the Argentine man.

Montes de Oca noted that "the most solid line of investigation" was that the crime was linked with the sale of illegal drugs.

He said there was no sign that the killing was due to extortion. He noted that it was also unlikely that it was connected to the murder of two Canadians at Xcaret Hotel, 11 kilometers away, last Friday.

Authorities earlier said that the two 34-year-old Canadians killed were involved in drug and arms trafficking crimes.

Beach Club in Mexico Expressed Sympathy to the Argentine Man's Family

Colleagues and friends of Federico Mazzoni praised him for his dedication to his work and expressed sympathy to the family of the Argentine man.

"We regret the event recorded this Tuesday afternoon at our facilities. We extend our condolences and prayers to the relatives of our colleague," the beach club said in a statement.

The club added that they were collaborating with the corresponding authorities and would wait for the result of the investigations.

Argentine Man's Murder is Being Linked to Alleged Irregularities by Beach Club Owner

Federico Mazzoni arrived in Mexico 20 years ago and became the right-hand man of the owner of Mamita's beach club, Jorge Marzuca.

According to Infobae, the family of the 47-year-old Argentine suspects that Mazzoni's murder could be due to alleged irregularities by Marzuca.

"He [Mazzoni] has been the manager and right-hand man of the owner of the beach club for many years. My brother always responded on his behalf and Mexico is a country totally managed by drug trafficking and the police," said the victim's sister Victoria Mazzoni.

Victoria continued that "the owner reported something that he did not have to report," so the gunmen "searched for him for several days."

However, Victoria noted that since the gunmen did not find Marzuka, "they killed my brother, who followed him in the hierarchy."

Infobae reported that Marzuca is accused of threatening businessman Jorge Brizuela, alias "El Venezolano," who in December 2020 experienced an armed attack while traveling in his van.

Brizuela reportedly pointed to Marzuca as one of those responsible for the attack. El Diario reported that Marzuca and Brizuela fought over a business.

A source told El Diario that Marzuca "somehow" negotiated" with drug dealers "so they would not settle there anymore." But after Brizuela stopped supporting Marzuca, drug dealers started to return to the area to sell drugs.

Reports said Brizuela is a former Venezuelan military man turned businessman, who is powerful to stop the narcos from harassing Marzuca.

Victoria said she believed that the murder of his brother could be a message to the beach club's owner. According to Victoria, she and her relatives were already taking steps to repatriate his brother's remains.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Consulate General in Merida released a travel alert to its citizens hours before the killing because of the violence in the Riviera Maya.

"In light of recent security incidents and criminal activity in popular tourist destinations including Cancún, Playa Del Carmen, and Tulum, U.S. citizens are reminded to exercise increased caution when traveling to the state of Quintana Roo. Criminal activity and violence may occur throughout the state, including areas frequented by U.S. citizen visitors," the travel alert noted. 

READ MORE: Mexico: Killings of 2 Canadians in Resort Due to Debts Between International Gangs

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Jess Smith

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