# Canadian tourist killed in shooting at Teotihuacan pyramids, 13 others hurt
*Event date: 2026-04-20*
A gunman opened fire at Mexico’s Teotihuacan pyramids on Monday, killing a Canadian woman and injuring at least 13 other people before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to authorities. The attack unfolded at one of the country’s best-known archaeological and tourist sites, turning a crowded historic landmark into a scene of panic.
The State of Mexico said seven of the wounded had been shot and that others were hurt in falls as visitors scrambled for safety. Local authorities said the injured included tourists from Colombia, Russia and Canada. The state government said care was being provided to those affected and that security officers would remain at the site while the investigation continued.
Videos and photos reported by local media showed a man standing with a gun atop a pyramid while people ducked for cover. A tour guide told AP that the shooting began shortly after 11:30am local time, when dozens of tourists were at the top of the Pyramid of the Moon. As people rushed down the steps, the gunman allegedly kept firing. The guide described visitors lying face down on the platform to avoid being targeted.
Authorities later identified the suspected shooter as Julio Cesar Jasso Ramirez, a Mexican national. No motive was given in the supplied reporting. That absence is important: the public record at this point supports the facts of the shooting, casualties and location, but not a confident explanation for why it happened.
The incident drew a quick political response. President Claudia Sheinbaum said she had instructed authorities to thoroughly investigate the events and that her government was in contact with the Canadian embassy. She said personnel from the Secretariat of the Interior and Culture were heading to the site to provide assistance and accompaniment. Those remarks underline the diplomatic and security sensitivity of an attack that involved a foreign victim at a major cultural attraction.
Teotihuacan is not just a tourist destination; it is one of the most significant pre-Hispanic urban centers in Mesoamerica. That makes the shooting especially striking, because the site normally represents heritage, tourism and national identity rather than public violence. The event also comes less than two months before the start of the FIFA World Cup, which Mexico will cohost with the United States and Canada, sharpening concerns about security and visitor protection.
The confirmed facts are limited but serious: one Canadian woman dead, at least 13 injured, and a suspected gunman who later died by suicide. The investigation is now the key unanswered question, but the immediate reality is already clear enough. A place built around history and tourism became, for a brief and violent moment, a crime scene.
