Three men found dead this week in a Southern California cemetery were executed near the grave of a man who was murdered in Mexico last year, suggesting possible links to a drug cartel or a gang.

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said detectives were looking into whether the location of the triple homicide was meant to send a message.

'All three were killed there at the same time,' Bianco said at a news conference.

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Aerial footage shows the lifeless bodies of three men 'blurred' lying in the middle of the Perris Valley Cemetery in Southern California on Monday

Riverside sheriff's deputies were summoned to the scene and set up tents to shield the bodies from view

The trio of victims were found suffering from unspecified injuries and their execution-style deaths are being investigated as a triple homicide

The three men were identified as Perris residents Jaime Covarrubias Espindola, 50; Jose Maria Aguilar-Espejel, 38 and Rodrigo Aguilar-Espejel, 28.

The bodies were found on Monday in the grass at the Perris Valley Cemetery east of Los Angeles. The causes of death were not immediately released.

While a motive hasn't been determined, Bianco said the men appear to have been killed execution-style.

'It certainly seems that way,' he said.

While they were found Monday, it´s not clear when the men were killed.

Bianco said detectives were looking at security camera footage to try and pinpoint how the men got to the cemetery.

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said at a press conference on Tuesday that detectives are trying to determine whether a cartel or a gang killed the men to send a message

Univision reported that the elaborately decorated grave belonged to a man who was tortured and murdered in Michoacan, Mexico, on December 20.

Riverside Press-Enterprise reported that the burial site where the three bodies were found was festooned with hearts, balloons and a crucifix.

Officials did not name the deceased, or say whether a relationship existed between that person and the recent victims.

Detectives from Riverside have been in contact with Mexican authorities, the sheriff said.

According to a Tuesday press release from the agency, deputies from the Perris Station responded to the 900 Block of North Perris Boulevard at around 10.30am Monday after a report of three men laying unresponsive on a burial plot.

The trio of victims were found suffering from unspecified injuries.

Aerial footage from CBS Los Angeles and still photos taken at the scene showed the victims’ bodies laying in the grass amid bouquet of flowers and Valentine's Day balloons.

The sheriff’s department said the men, ages 50, 38 and 28, were killed next to the grave of a man who was killed in Mexico in December 2019

Two of the bodies were next to one another, and the third was a short distance away

Detectives worked into the evening Monday gathering evidence as part of the probe

Witnesses reported seeing one of the victims hunched other, another laying face down and the third wrapped in something resembling a sleeping bag, according to KTLA5.

Two of the bodies were next to one another, possibly on top of a grave marker, and the third was a short distance away.

Detectives from the Central Homicide Unit were called to the cemetery and took over the homicide investigation.

'This appears to be an isolated incident and there is no perceived threat to the public,' the press release stated.

Investigators were working to determine if Monday's triple homicide is connected to two shootings that took place in Perris earlier this month,

Perris Mayor Michael Vargas released a statement saying he was 'heartbroken by the horrific crimes that have taken place today.'