MEXICO CITY, March 9

At least 15 persons died following a shooting at a nightclub in central Mexico, prosecutors said Saturday.

Another four persons, three men and a woman, suffered injuries, public prosecutor's office spokesman Juan Jose Martinez said.

The nightclub lies in Guanajuato state, where authorities have launched an operation against criminal gangs involved in fuel theft.

The attack took place in the early hours of Saturday as several heavily armed men opened fire at the La Playa nightclub in Salamanca before making off in a vehicle, the spokesman said.

The four injured people were taken to a nearby hospital. So far, none of the victims have been identified.

Salamanca is the site of the main pipeline of state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos, where fuel thieves have cost the firm around $3 billion over the last few years.

In late January, a fake bomb was found in a car parked close to the refinery.

Nearby, signs were found threatening Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and demanding that he withdraw from the area soldiers fighting against fuel theft gangs.

More than a decade after the launch of a militarized effort against drug cartels that has led to some of Mexico's bloodiest years on record, the latest effort will test the new government's ability to curtail the reach of organized crime. Lopez Obrador took office on December 1, vowing to fight crime in a new way. — Agencies