LOS ANGELES: At least three people were killed and five others wounded in a shootout at a biker rally on Saturday in the US state of New Mexico, local media reported.

The shooting occurred around 5pm (2300 GMT) as 20,000 bikers took part in an annual Memorial Day motorcycle rally in Red River, a small town near the ski destination of Taos.

In a video interview with local outlet Questa Del Rio News, Red River Mayor Linda Calhoun confirmed the deaths and injuries, and said an unspecified number of suspects had been arrested.

“No law enforcement, no first responders were injured. No local people were injured… It was a gang-related incident,” she said, declining to divulge which gangs were believed to be involved.

“The shooters have all been apprehended,” she added.

The Taos News reported that a law enforcement officer had referred to the incident over central dispatch as “a rolling shootout — between Banditos (Motorcycle Club) and someone else.” Speaking to local ABC affiliate KOAT, one witness described chaos breaking out in the huge crowd.

“There were people running by where we were standing, screaming, ‘There’s shooting down there’,” said Eddie Cook. “As everybody was running by, then I heard the gunshots.”

The shooting prompted the mayor of Taos to put a curfew in place between the hours of 10pm and 4am (local time), and ban the sale of alcohol, according to the Taos News.

Published in Dawn, May 29th, 2023