Uruapan's mayor, Carlos Manzo, was shot dead on November 1, 2025, during the Festival de las Velas in the city's historic center. The attack happened as he mingled with attendees, wounding a councilor and others. Federal and state authorities condemned the crime and bolstered security in the area.
Carlos Alberto Manzo Rodríguez, 40-year-old independent mayor of Uruapan, Michoacán, was attacked around 20:00 on November 1, 2025, during the Festival de las Velas inauguration, a Day of the Dead cultural event. While taking photos with costumed children and mingling with families, an armed man opened fire on him and his entourage. Manzo sustained multiple gunshot wounds—at least three to the abdomen and one to the arm, per reports—and was rushed to Hospital Fray Juan de San Miguel, where he died at 20:50. His escorts returned fire, killing the main attacker and detaining two more suspects; seven 9 mm casings and a handgun were recovered.
Public Works councilor Víctor Hugo de la Cruz Saucedo ('Víctor Saladitas'), an employee, and an escort were wounded but reported stable. Manzo had federal and municipal protection since December 2024, bolstered in May 2025 with 14 Guardia Nacional members. He had previously denounced threats from cartels like CJNG and sought help from Omar García Harfuch, stating: 'I don't want to be one of the executed' and criticizing the 'hugs, not bullets' policy.
On November 2, a posthumous homage took place in Uruapan's Plaza Morelos, where his wife, Grecia Quiroz, vowed to carry on his fight: 'Though they silenced his voice, they won't silence this struggle.' Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla was insulted and chased from the funeral with cries of 'Get out, murderer!' In Morelia, protesters marched from Jardín Morelos to the Palacio de Gobierno, stormed it violently, caused damage, and burned documents, accusing state omission; they were dispersed with tear gas without injuries.
President Claudia Sheinbaum condemned the 'vile murder' and strengthened the security strategy, vowing 'zero impunity.' U.S. official Christopher Landau offered cooperation against organized crime, welcomed by García Harfuch. In Michoacán, cartels like CJNG, Los Viagras, and Caballeros Templarios vie for control in Tierra Caliente. The state Congress will appoint a substitute within a month, respecting gender and independence.