On December 23, a 29 year old man was found in one of the neighborhoods up the hill from the beach in Acapulco with his hands and feet bound, killed by two gunshots.
The occupation - on the road linking Mexico City with the beach resort of Acapulco - came in response to the murder of vigilante leader Guadalupe Quinones Carbajal on Monday.
So far, unlike the tourist city of Acapulco to the south, Puerto Vallarta, a beach city in the state of Jalisco, has largely avoided the cartel and street gang related violence that is affecting many other pockets of Mexico.