Politician raises serial killer fears after seven women killed in same state

A politician for the state of Jalisco, Mexico, has warned that there may be a serial killer targeting women after several women's bodies were found.

The bodies of three women have been found around the resort town of Puerto Vallarta all within a few days of each other, prompting fears of a serial killer.

According to local outlets, all three bodies had severe injuries to their faces and bodies.

The first woman was found on 10 May by police near Rancho El Pirulí in the Chimborazo area. On 15 May, the body of a second woman was found at a roadside stop.

A third body was found by a dirt road in the Parque Las Palmas neighbourhood on 21 May.

The bodies of three women have been found around Puerto Vallarta within a few days of each other (Alfredo ESTRELLA / AFP via Getty Images)

It prompted concerns about a serial killer possibly operating and targeting women in the area, though local officials have said the preliminary information from their investigation doesn't indicate the deaths are linked.

So that would be a 'no' on the prospect of a serial killer according to them, with police instead looking into the possibility the women were killed elsewhere and their bodies deposited around the Puerto Vallarta area instead.

However, local politician Yussara Canales told the New York Post she thinks there is a pattern to the killings and is concerned officials are downplaying the fears of a serial killer because Jalisco's capital city Guadalajara is hosting a number of games at the World Cup next month.

She thinks she's spotted a linking factor, saying: "In every instance, the victims’ blouses had been pulled up. In two - possibly three - of the cases, their blouses were found in this raised position."

Canales spoke out against the position of local officials saying it wasn't the work of a serial killer.

Local politician Yussara Canales suggested that despite the officials saying the deaths were likely not connected there was a linking factor (Instagram/@yussaracanalesg)

"Let me tell you why I think they did it: because, sadly, this news is making international headlines. It is leaving our port city in a very bad light," she suggested.

"Perhaps this is the attorney general’s office’s way of trying to counteract all the negative notoriety our municipality is currently receiving.

"I do believe this is something that puts us very much on alert - something that compels us women to be far more cautious and, sadly, to live in fear."

Seven women have been murdered in 2026 across the state of Jalisco, an area about the size of Czechia and with a population of eight million.

The Mexican state connects to the country's west coast, with the popular tourist resort of Puerto Vallarta connecting to the Pacific Ocean.