US Mormon children killed in Mexico attack

At least five US citizens, a mother and four children, have been killed in a violent attack by suspected drug cartel gunmen in northern Mexico.

The victims are said to be members of the LeBaron family, linked to a breakaway Mormon community which settled in Mexico several decades ago.

Video of the scene shows a burnt-out car. Some victims may have burned alive and several more people are missing.

Local media say the attack could have been a case of mistaken identity.

LeBaron family members were quoted as saying a group of three mothers and their 14 children had set off in a convoy of cars from Bavispe in Sonora state and were heading to La Mora in the neighbouring state of Chihuahua.

They were ambushed by gunmen in Bavispe. A burnt-out SUV was later found by the side of the road with the remains of the victims.

Family members say those inside the SUV were Rhonita Miller LeBaron and her four children: six-month-old twins, an eight-year-old and a 10-year-old.

Two other women and their 10 children were shot at as they tried to flee.

Some reports say more dead were found in another location, but some of those who fled are believed to have survived.

The Chihuahua state attorney said the number of dead remained “confusing” with family members speaking of nine people killed and local media reporting the death toll could be as high as 12.

Rhonita Miller LeBaron’s cousin, Julian LeBaron, called it “a massacre”.