Mexican priest killed after mass in Chiapas

Parishioners gathered in the town of San Andres Larrainzar to say their final goodbyes to a Mexican Catholic priest who was killed in the southern state of Chiapas after officiating a mass.

Marcelo Perez - who was Tzotzil, an Indigenous Maya group native to the area - was leaving the neighborhood of Cuxtitali in San Cristobal de las Casas, one of the state's largest cities, and returning to his home church nearby when he was killed, the Jesuits in Mexico said in a statement.

Two people on a motorcycle came up to his car, a white Ford, and shot him, according to state prosecutors.

Mexico has seen a streak of murders in the past few weeks, including the beheading of the mayor of the state capital of Guerrero and an intra-cartel war in Sinaloa, which has left hundreds dead or missing.

Perez's community said that he had actively spoken out against organized crime in the area.

At the funeral, dozens of mourning locals surrounded the coffin with the body of Perez and participated in a mass to honor him.

During her morning conference, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum lamented the killing and said an investigation is undergoing.

"Before that, I would like to express that we regret the murder, the assassination of Father Marcelo Perez Perez in San Cristobal de las Casas. The investigation is being carried out. The Secretary of the Interior was communicating with both the state government and the diocese and with the ecclesiastical authorities. We are coordinating to be able to advance in the investigation and that this crime does not go unpunished."

Pérez, 50, had often received threats, but nonetheless continued to work as a peace activist.

While there was no immediate information on the killers Rev. Pérez’s peace and mediation efforts may have angered one of the two drug cartels that are currently fighting for control of Chiapas.