Story By: Ana Lacasa, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News 

This Mexican mother and daughter have been tortured and killed after posting a photo of them posing with a fake assault rifle that reportedly led to them being mixed up with a criminal gang.

According to local media, the unnamed mother and daughter from the municipality of Reynosa in the north-eastern Mexican state of Tamaulipas posted a photo of themselves posing with a fake assault rifle on social media before they suddenly went missing.

The photo shows the mum holding the fake weapon while wearing military-style trousers as her daughter poses as a wild cat.

Local media said that concerned family members reported them as missing hours before the police found their dead bodies.

After reportedly being tortured and executed, their bodies were abandoned in the middle of the road where the police also found bullet casings.

The blindfolded women were face down with their hands and feet tied while bullet holes and knife wounds were found on their necks, according to the local authorities.

Reports said that the state of Tamaulipas is experiencing a crime wave caused by warring gangs, including the Cartel Del Noreste and the Gulf Cartel.

It is currently unclear why the two women were killed, but local media report the police have a hypothesis which suggests they became confused with being members of a criminal group after posting the fake gun photo on social media.

No arrests have been made yet and the investigation is ongoing.

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