Two suspected Israeli crime bosses gunned down in Mexico assassination

Two Israelis suspected of mafia links were shot dead in a luxury Mexico City mall in what could have been a settling of scores, Mexico's attorney general's office said on Thursday.

The two men were gunned down in a restaurant inside the mall in the south of the sprawling capital city.

Early investigations "lead us to link the events to a settling of scores between criminal groups," said the attorney general's spokesman Ulises Lara in a news conference.

In a statement, Israel's embassy in Mexico named the two victims as Alon Azulay, 41, and Benjamin Yeshurun Sutchi, 44, who both had "criminal records in Israel as well as Mexico."

Authorities, who believe they belonged to the Israeli underworld, are trying to find out if they had links with drug trafficking, arms sales or money laundering.

Israeli media reported that Sutchi was a well-known crime boss, with his killing likely to have major repercussions in Israel's criminal underworld.

A woman was arrested trying to leave the scene of the crime.

Surveillance video shown on Mexican television showed two men outside a busy restaurant shooting in the air, sending customers running for cover and forcing a police patrol to back off.

The two men took off in a vehicle as one police officer was wounded.

The strange scene has led some to muse whether it was intended merely as a distraction to keep police away while the two Israelis were slain few minutes later by two assailants, including a woman.

Other video surveillance images showed a scantily dressed woman walking down the street where she was arrested.

Local media claimed she was trying to change clothes and about to put on a wig at the moment of arrest.

The Mexican woman who has not been identified, allegedly told authorities it was a crime of passion but later gave details that suggested it was related to criminal gangs.

"The passion motive has been discarded," said Lara.