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A Peruvian mayor was shot dead by hitmen Thursday while on his way to work in the country’s north, authorities reported, amid a surge in crime that has dominated a tense presidential race.
Victor Febre, the 44-year-old mayor of the Veinteseis de Octubre district in Piura region, is the third municipal official to be gunned down by suspected organised crime gangs since the start of the year.
Videos released by local media show the attackers, their faces hidden by helmets, fleeing on a motorcycle after, according to the prosecutor’s office, riddling the mayor with bullets as he was heading to his office.
Local press media said Febre died while being taken to a health center.
An investigation into the killing has been launched.
Peru is experiencing its worst security crisis since a bloody conflict between 1980 and 2000 that pitted the state against Maoist guerrillas.
The Piura region bordering Ecuador is one of the worst affected by a spike in racketeering and contract killings.
From 2018 to 2025, the number of reported murders rose from 1,000 to 2,600 per year, while reported extortion cases jumped more than eightfold to 26,500.
Right-wing presidential frontrunner Keiko Fujimori, who topped the first round of the election on April 12, has promised an “iron fist” approach to security if elected.
Her rival, leftist former minister Roberto Sanchez, has proposed constitutional reforms to support the armed forces in the fight against crime.
