According to prosecutors, two taxi drivers were taken into custody in Cancun, Mexico, for attacking a vehicle carrying foreign tourists.
The incidents, which occurred Thursday in the Caribbean resort, were the latest in a long line of attacks on cars that Medallion Cab drivers believe are driven by ride-hailing services such as Uber.
“Such conduct won’t be permitted,” according to prosecutors in Quintana Roo.
“Strong action will be taken to ensure that the state is a safe destination for local inhabitants and visitors,” the state prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
Locals shared videos of at least two uniformed taxi drivers smashing a Chevy Suburban with poles and other objects on social media.
The van’s tailgate is open as the driver tries to flee, as shown in the video, and the visitors’ luggage falls out onto the street. Later, three women are seen taking their bags off the street.
One woman shouts in English, “What are you doing?” while irate cab drivers roam about with what appeared like homemade cudgels. “This is not ok.”
After witnessing the incident, a nearby business owner extended an invitation to the women involved, urging them to seek refuge in her store. The video footage captures the taxi drivers in pursuit of the Suburban’s driver as he races down the street until eventually encountering a police officer.
Two taxi drivers were accused of robbing people and causing property damage and injuries, according to the prosecutor’s office.
According to local media, the Suburban was operated by a local limousine service rather than through a ride-hailing app. Cab drivers in Cancun have in the past mistakenly assumed that private cars were Uber cars, leading to attacks on those vehicles.
In response to a week of blockades and violent incidents by drivers opposed to ride-hailing service Uber, Cancun residents organized a boycott of Medallion cabs in January.
Tourists have been denied access to Uber vehicles due to roadblocks, stone-throwing, and physical interference from cab drivers. In a travel warning, the U.S. said that “past disputes between these services and local taxi unions have occasionally turned violent, resulting in injuries to U.S. citizens in some instances.”