Mexican officials rule out terrorism in resort city ferry blast

MEXICO CITY — Authorities said Sunday that a crude explosive device caused a ferry blast that injured more than two dozen people last month in Playa del Carmen, where the U.S. Embassy has warned travelers to stay away from the ferries and parts of the Caribbean resort city.

Prosecutors said they believe there is no motivation for a terrorist group to have carried out the attack and also think criminal gangs would not have done it, knowing it would draw unwanted attention and increased security.

“Responsibility by terrorist organizations or organized crime has been ruled out,” Deputy Attorney General Arturo Elias Beltran said at a news conference.

He added that the bomb “had a very limited capacity” and “was not intended to do major damage.”

The Feb. 21 explosion ripped through the upper section of the ferry as it was moored to the dock at Playa del Carmen, leaving a gaping hole in the side of the vessel.

Passengers had already unloaded after making the trip from the nearby resort island of Cozumel but were on the pier at the time. Twenty-six people, including American tourists, were injured — none seriously.

On March 2, another object said to be a possible bomb was found attached to the underside of a ferry belonging to the same company whose boat was bombed earlier. That vessel was anchored about 500 yards off Cozumel. There were no passengers aboard at the time, and authorities said it had been out of service for over 10 months.

Investigators are pursuing multiple lines of inquiry but have not made any arrests or advanced a definitive theory about a motive for the explosion.

In the wake of the ferry incidents, the U.S. Embassy barred U.S. government workers from taking ferries between Playa del Carmen and Cozumel, and warned American travelers to do the same.

The embassy also put out a separate alert, which it said was based on a different, unspecified “security threat,” that prohibits U.S. government employees from traveling to five neighborhoods in and around a central tourist zone of Playa del Carmen. Several all-inclusive resorts outside that area are not off-limits, however.

With the spring holiday season kicking into high gear, Mexican authorities sought to reassure travelers that it is safe to visit the Caribbean resorts, a major tourist draw for the country. Some 60 police officers and sniffer dogs have been deployed to guard the docks and ferries between Playa del Carmen and Cozumel.