Bodies of 35 'criminals' found in eastern Mexico

The bodies of at least 35 members of "a criminal organization" have been found in two trucks in Veracruz, eastern Mexico, most of whom had convictions, justice officials said. Veracruz state prosecutor Reynaldo Escobar told a news conference Tuesday the cadavers were located inside trucks at an underpass and that those so far identified had criminal records for murder, kidnapping and drug-peddling. A source in the prosecutors' office said the dead were 23 men and 12 women. "At this time we have 35 bodies confirmed dead," said the source from Xalapa, the state capital, as local television showed some corpses dumped on the street and others in the trucks covered with blue plastic sheeting. The bodies were discovered one day after at least 32 prisoners escaped from three correctional facilities in Veracruz, 14 of whom were recaptured, according to government figures. Escobar however told local media that the bodies were not those of the prison escapees. The victims were all part of the same criminal organization, Escobar said without elaborating. Attacks blamed on the Zetas drug cartel have increased in Veracruz this year as groups have moved in from neighboring Tamaulipas state, authorities say. The Zetas, a gang of former Mexican special forces turned hired killers, are suspected of organizing prison escapes to get trained gunmen for their ongoing battles against rival drug gangs and the Mexican military.