Mexican police on Tuesday found 14 bodies dismembered in plastic bags left in a van in the northern border city of Nuevo Laredo, in a bloody episode apparently linked to the war on drug gangs.

According to official information, at 07:30 a.m local time (1230 GMT), the police received a report of an abandoned truck in the city, inside which they found 10 black plastic bags containing the remains of 14 male bodies, aged approximately 30 to 35 years old.

No group has claimed responsibility for the massive slaughter, but drug cartels are the most likely to blame.

The truck was abandoned in front of City Hall and was left with a threatening message from the unidentified criminal group. Municipal officials and personnel of the Mexican armed forces arrived at the scene soon and had started investigation.

The state of Tamaulipas is one of the areas most affected by violence triggered by organized crime groups in recent years, with drug cartels engaging in a violent struggle for control of drug transfer routes to the United States.

More than 47,000 people in Mexico have been killed in drug-related violence since President Felipe Calderon launched the "war against organized crimes" in 2006.