The Secretariat of Public Safety said the gunmen arrived at a family reunion in Minatitlan asking to see someone named El Becky - the owner of a local bar - before opening fire.

It said seven men, five women, and a child were killed, and four others injured in the attack. There was no known motive for the shooting, but Veracruz is plagued with organised crime and bloody gun battles frequently erupt between rival drug gangs.