Gunfire Hits Hotel Bacab in Tulum as Attackers Leave a Threat

Attackers fired on the entrance of Hotel Bacab in Tulum's La Veleta neighborhood on Saturday afternoon and left a handwritten threat addressed to a man named Rafael. Paramedics who responded found no one injured.

The attack took place on Calle 12 Sur, between Calle 10 Sur and Avenida Cobá, according to local outlets that reported from the scene. Photographs and video published Saturday show bullet holes in the glass of the hotel's main door.

The handwritten message turns a shooting with no injuries into a direct threat against a specific person, delivered at the door of a hotel in one of Tulum's busiest residential districts. As of Saturday evening, neither the Quintana Roo Attorney General's Office (FGE) nor any police agency had said who the message was meant for or who fired the shots.

What investigators found at Hotel Bacab on Calle 12 Sur

Early reports differed on the scale of the attack. Marcrix Noticias and Conexión Caribe reported at least two shots against the entrance. Radar Quintana Roo reported that armed men fired from a moving vehicle and that crime scene technicians collected at least nine shell casings of a large caliber. Authorities had not released their own count by publication time.

The first alert pointed to a gunshot victim. Noticaribe reported that a police call described a person wounded by gunfire near the hotel, whose whereabouts were unknown. Paramedics who reached the site found no victims, and every outlet that reported on the scene described damage limited to the hotel's entrance.

Hotel Bacab operates as a boutique hotel and residential condo-hotel on Calle 12 Sur, with an art and wellness program for guests, according to its website and booking listings. None of the reports reviewed by The Tulum Times included a statement from the property.

A threat written in marker and pinned down with a stone

Radar Quintana Roo reported that the attackers left a bag beside the building containing a sheet of paper with explicit threats. Photographs published by Contraste Noticias show the sheet lying on the stone pavement, one corner held down by a rock, the text written by hand in red and dark marker.

The legible portion of the message, in Spanish, says the recipient is "ubicado," or located, and calls the note an "última advertencia," a final warning. It refers to what "los próximos," the next ones, will do, includes insults, and closes with the signature "Att. la compañía," roughly "Sincerely, the company."

The edges of the sheet fall outside the frame in every published image, so several lines are incomplete. Authorities have not confirmed the message's contents or said whether the signature corresponds to a known criminal group.

A surname cut off at the edge of the frame

The message opens with the name "Rafael," followed by a surname that begins with the letter B. The rest of the surname is cut off.

Radar Quintana Roo described the target only as a "Licenciado Rafael," using the Mexican honorific for a university graduate, commonly applied to lawyers. No outlet has published his full name, occupation, or any connection to the hotel, and no official source has identified him.

Federal and state forces close Calle 12 Sur

The response drew officers from the Municipal Police, the State Police and its Grupo Jaguar unit, the National Guard, the Mexican Army, and the Navy, according to Radar Quintana Roo. Investigative police and forensic specialists from the FGE processed the scene.

Calle 12 Sur remained closed to traffic at the hotel while investigators worked. Radar Quintana Roo reported that a case was opened for property damage, threats, and the carrying of firearms.

No arrests had been reported.

Earlier armed incidents in La Veleta this year

La Veleta, a fast-growing district of hotels, rental condos, restaurants, and homes southwest of Tulum's center, has recorded other armed incidents in 2026. On January 25, a man of about 30 was shot dead at Calle 10 Sur and 9 Poniente. On March 14, a man was wounded in the left arm during an exchange of fire near Calle 14 Sur. In June, armed men described in early reports as former employees robbed the payroll at Hotel Holistika and fired a shot into the air.

In March 2025, Tulum's security secretary, José Roberto Rodríguez Bautista, was shot in the same neighborhood and died the following day.

Two questions remain open for investigators: who Rafael is, named in the message, and whether the shots at Hotel Bacab were aimed at him. Until the FGE answers them, the only name tied to Saturday's attack is the one written on a sheet of paper outside the hotel door, and part of it is missing.

What should authorities share with La Veleta residents while the investigation into the Hotel Bacab attack remains open? Join the conversation and share your perspective with us on Instagram and Facebook at @thetulumtimes.