Mexico City, Aug 26 (IANS) At least 40 people were killed and dozens injured in an attack on a casino in the northern Mexican city of Monterrey, officials said.
According to the police, the attackers forced their way into the Casino Royale Thursday. They sprayed petrol-like flammable liquid and set the house ablaze, trapping gamblers inside.
The toll could climb further as more bodies were being pulled out, according to Adrian de la Garza, the prosecutor for Nuevo Leon state.
The attackers, about two dozen in number, had told the customers to leave but some of the gamblers were too terrified to get out, reported Xinhua.
Authorities believe drug gangs were behind the attack, as President Felipe Calderon rejected the attack as an "aberrant act of terror and barbarism" and vowed to continue the fight against organised crime.