CIUDAD VICTORIA, Mexico: The bodies of six women who had been kidnapped a day earlier were found Saturday in northern Mexico, authorities said.

The women were kidnapped a day earlier by armed men from inside a food company, in Tamaulipas state. The bodies were located along a highway in the northern state, told AFP.

The state, south of the US state of Texas, is among the hardest hit by Mexico’s violent crime, much of it gang and drug related.

Authorities said they were investigating the crime.

Racked by brutal violence linked to the multi-billion-dollar narcotics trade, the country posted a record number of homicides last year: 25,339.