At least 11 people died in his community central Mexicothe authorities announced, when violent clashes broke out between the villagers and thugs who had gone to extort money from them, according to Mexican media.

The fight, which broke out in community of Tescaltitlan tof the state of Mexico (central), resulted in the killing of “eight people” who were apparently “engaging in criminal activities”, as well as “three residents”, explained in a press release published by the state secretariat (s.s. the ministry ) of Security.

According to reports in the Mexican press, the thugs were members of the La Familia Michoacana gang (pp. “Family from [πολιτεία] Michoacán”), who went to the farming community to extort money from residents. But some of the residents organized themselves and went to clash with them.

A video circulating on social networking sites and media outlets — among others, posted in the digital edition of the Milenio newspaper — depicts the chaotic clashes between residents armed with pistolsrifles, bats, knives and even more heavily armed thugs in an outdoor sports venue.

State police, along with the National Guard and other law enforcement agencies, are investigating the case.

More than 420,000 murders have been officially recorded in Mexico since the so-called “war on drugs” began in 2006, with the deployment of the armed forces inside the country to crack down on the cartels. Since then, the country’s homicide rate has tripled, reaching 25 per 100,000 residents. Over 110,000 enforced disappearances have also been recorded, the majority since 2006. Both murders and enforced disappearances are attributed by the authorities in the majority to organized crime gangs.