Authorities in Puerto Vallarta, a well-known tourist hub in Mexico’s Jalisco state, are investigating a series of disturbing discoveries involving the deaths of several women, raising concerns about a potential pattern of violence.
In recent weeks, the bodies of multiple women have been found in different locations across the city, a popular destination for American visitors, according to local sources. These incidents have prompted an urgent inquiry from local law enforcement officials.
While the identities of the victims remain unknown, police have disclosed that the women were aged between 30 and 35. They also shared common characteristics, such as having tattoos and being found partially unclothed.
Given these similarities, investigators are exploring the possibility of a connection between the cases, hoping to uncover whether these tragic events are linked.
Tourists continue to enjoy the scenic boardwalk in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico, as seen on February 24, 2026. (Photo by Alfredo Estrella/AFP)
Mexico News Daily reported that since no friends or relatives of the women have come forward to claim any of the bodies, authorities are also exploring the possibility that they were killed elsewhere and dumped in Puerto Vallarta.
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The first body was found on May 10, and only days later, a second body was found. The third body was found last Thursday, sparking fears of a repeat offender.
The women’s bodies were recovered in three separate places on the outskirts of the city, away from crowded areas where most residents live and where most tourists enjoy vacations.
A beach scene at Playa de los Muertos in the Romantic Zone of Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico, on April 28, 2025. (Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket)
About 1.7 million tourists visited Puerto Vallarta in 2022, the latest for which statistics are available. The vast majority of those tourists were Americans.
Following the death of cartel kingpin Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” violence exploded in the state of Jalisco.
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After Oseguera Cervantes was killed, the Jalisco New Generation cartel responded by setting vehicles and buildings ablaze and creating roadblocks in Guadalajara, the state’s capital city. Seven people, including Oseguera Cervantes, were killed in clashes with Mexican authorities.
Smoke rises from burning vehicles on highways in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico, on Feb. 22, 2026, amid violence following a military operation in which a government source said Mexican drug lord Nemesio Oseguera, known as “El Mencho,” was killed. (Morelifediares/Reuters)
Hundreds of Americans were stranded in the state during February when the violence reached its peak, and the State Department issued a heightened travel alert.
Since then, the region has stabilized.