CELAYA, Mexico, Oct 3, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Armed assailants attacked a drug rehabilitation center in Mexico, killing four people and wounding five others, local authorities said Wednesday.

The attack took place in Salamanca in the central state of Guanajuato on Tuesday night, the municipal government said in a statement.

Police and the National Guard "initiated a chase to find those responsible", but the attackers escaped by throwing down metal spikes to puncture the tires of security forces in pursuit, it said.

Police said three bodies of those killed were found inside the rehab center while a fourth was found in the street.

No suspects have been arrested yet.

Disputes between drug gangs have led to rehab centers being targeted in several attacks in Mexico.

Authorities say some rehab centers are used as safe havens by suspected members of criminal groups, who are attacked by their rivals when found.

Guanajuato is Mexico's most violent state, according to official homicide statistics, due to fighting between the local Santa Rosa de Lima cartel and the powerful Jalisco New Generation.

Mexico has recorded more than 450,000 murders since December 2006, when a controversial military anti-drug operation was launched.