GUARDS and officials at a prison in northern Mexico let inmates out, lent them guns and allowed them to use official vehicles to carry out drug-related killings, including the massacre of 17 people, prosecutors claimed.

The mysterious disappearance of a former Mexican presidential candidate has sparked fear that nobody is safe from relentless kidnapping and rampant drug violence.

FEDERAL forces have detained 10 mayors and 18 other officials for allegedly protecting one of Mexico’s most violent drug cartels in an unprecedented anti-corruption sweep in the Pacific coast state of Michoacan.

Security camera footage shows guards at a Mexican prison nonchalantly stood by as 53 dangerous inmates walked out – and didn’t rush into action with their guns drawn until well after their convoy of escape vehicles had disappeared into the night.