Mexican mayor who stood up to cartels gunned down in 'kamikaze attack' weeks after haunting statement

A Mexican mayor who called for “brute force” against the country’s violent drug cartels was gunned down in public Saturday night during “Day of the Dead” celebrations in his hometown.

Carlos Manzo, 40, the firebrand mayor of Uruapan in Mexico’s Michoacan province, was shot dead by two gunmen in front of shocked supporters in the city’s central square, the Los Angeles Times reported .

“I condemn in the strongest possible terms the vile assassination of the mayor of Uruapan, Carlos Manzo,” Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum wrote on X . “I express my deepest condolences to his family and loved ones, as well as to the people of Uruapan, for this irreparable loss.”

Security consultant David Saucedo described the brazen assassination as a “kamikaze attack.”

Manzo gained fame as head of