A young woman who dressed as a ghost at night for a joke to scare her neighbours has been shot dead.

The incident took place in the neighbourhood of San Miguel Dorami in the municipality of Naucalpan de Juarez in the Mexican state of Mexico earlier this month.

According to reports, the unnamed woman decided to play a prank on her neighbours by walking the streets after nightfall disguised as ‘La Llorona’ (‘The Weeping Woman’).

La Llorona is a ghost in Latin American folklore who roams the earth mourning her two children whom she drowned in a river in a fit of rage after seeing her husband with another woman.

According to local residents, the woman was roaming the streets covered in a white sheet shouting “ay mis hijos” (“oh my children”).

One local resident filmed the woman as she walked down the street playing her prank just before she was fatally hit by several bullets.

Local media including La Verdad Noticias reported that the scared attacker fled after allegedly firing the fatal shots.

The Municipal Police have not revealed the victim’s name. However, she is reported to have been between 20 and 25 years old.

No arrests have been reported. However, the state authorities have launched an investigation to identify the responsible suspect or suspects.