In an April 21 morning briefing following the April 20 shooting at Teotihuacán's Pyramid of the Moon—where 27-year-old Julio César Jasso Ramírez killed a Canadian tourist and injured 13 before committing suicide—State of Mexico authorities detailed the National Guard's 9-10 minute response. Officials described the attack as planned and Columbine-inspired, announced enhanced security at tourist sites, and closed the site indefinitely.
State of Mexico prosecutor José Luis Cervantes detailed that Jasso Ramírez, from Tlapa, Guerrero, initiated the attack around 11:20 a.m. on April 20, armed with a 1968 .38 special revolver (valued at 40,000 pesos), a knife, and cartridges. He took hostages atop the Pyramid of the Moon, leaving notes in his backpack inspired by massacres like Columbine and referencing an 'authority not of this earth.'
National Guard commander Guillermo Briseño Lobera explained the response: approximately 30 elements stationed nearby mobilized within 9-10 minutes. 'The personnel grabs their weapons... two elements climb both sides of the pyramid,' he said. After wounding the attacker in the leg, they cornered him, leading Jasso Ramírez to flee and take his own life on a side of the structure.
Casualties included one Canadian woman killed and 13 injured foreigners (Colombians, Brazilians, Americans, Russians), with eight still hospitalized per the Secretariat of Government. The National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) closed the Teotihuacán site until further notice.
President Claudia Sheinbaum labeled it an 'isolated episode' tied to 'mental illness,' ruling out racist motives. Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch announced bolstered physical and cyber patrolling at archaeological sites ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
