Mexican officials have promised to investigate after a truck filled with 157 bodies ended up dumped in a field as the country struggles with a record murder rate.

The bodies were loaded on to the refrigerated lorry in Jalisco state after morgues ran out of space, before it ended up behind a residential building.

Those living in the nearby city of Guadalajara eventually complained about the smell, prompting local officials to launch a probe into how it ended up there.

A truck filled with the rotting bodies of 157 murder victims ended up dumped in a field in Mexico as the country struggles to cope with a record number of murders

The bodies were piled into the refrigerated truck after morgues in the state of Jalisco filled up, before ending up in a field behind a housing complex

While the bodies were being kept refrigerated, the process only slows decomposition and does not stop it altogether.

Many of the bodies were already badly rotted having been found in mass graves across the state.

Mexico saw almost 16,000 people murdered in the first six months of 2018, the highest number since records began in 1997 and an increase of 17 per cent on 2017.

Javier Perlasca, an inspector for the state human rights commission, said that 'this was a mistake ... and it is bothering the neighbors' as well as causing pain for victims' families.

'It is time to end these comings and goings that only outrage and hurt people,' Perlasca said, adding that the bodies should be given a decent burial.

The truck was removed from the field as images emerged of another person shot dead in nearby Guadalajara.

Mexico saw almost 16,000 people murdered in the first six months of this year - the highest since records began in 1997 (pictured, a murdered man in Jalisco state on September 17)

A murder victim lays in the street in the city of Guadalajara, a short distance from where the truck ended up being dumped

Police could be seen gathered around the body of a young man found laying in the street, dead from apparent gunshot wounds.

No further details were immediately available about the killing.

Meanwhile families of missing people to confronted officers at the site of a mass grave discovered in the state of Veracruz this month.

Officers discovered the remains of 174 people in 33 pits at at El Arbolillo's narco-cemetery two weeks ago in one of the largest mass graves ever found in the country.

Veracruz was the scene of vicious gang battles around two years ago, which is when officers believe the bodies were buried.

Morgues in several states have run out of room. Last year, employees at prosecutors' offices near a morgue in the southern state of Guerrero said they had stopped work because of the smell.

Relatives of missing people confront police after the discovery of 174 bodies buried in a mass grave in the state of Veracruz, in southern Mexico

Veracruz, where the mass grave was discovered, was the scene of vicious gang wars two years ago when it is believed the bodies were buried

Chief prosecutor for the Gulf state of Veracruz said some clandestine graves were not being investigated 'because we don't have space to put the bodies that we might find.'

In Jalisco, Perlasca said, 'the physical space to keep the bodies of the dead has been outstripped ... given that every day they are finding bodies in different places, in clandestine graves, shot dead in the street, etcetera.'

On Friday, five people were shot dead and nine more were injured by three gunmen dressed as a mariachi band opened fire in Garibaldi Plaza, Mexico City.

Another person subsequently died, bringing the death toll to six.

The iconic square was packed with tourists being serenaded by bands ahead of the country's Independence Day celebrations at the weekend.

The Mexico City prosecutors' office said at least one foreigner was among those wounded in Friday night's attack.

Four people died initially and a fifth died of her wounds at a hospital Saturday afternoon, authorities said.

Five people were shot dead in Mexico City at the weekend in the tourist hotspot of Garibaldi Plaza by three men dressed as mariachi players

An armed policeman stands guard in Mexico City as officers carry out raids in relation to the fatal shooting three days earlier

The news outlet La Silla Rota circulated surveillance video of the alleged assailants wearing traditional embroidered jackets and pants as they fled on motorcycles.

The shooting cast a bloody pall over Independence Day festivities.

Many Mexicans will wear mariachi costumes, a symbol of national pride, on Saturday night to commemorate the launch of the revolt against Spanish rule on Sept. 16, 1810.

It is also the busiest time of year for Garibaldi Plaza, a beloved but seedy square that draws heavily on Mexican folklore.

Lisa Sanchez, director of Mexicans United Against Delinquency, described the shooting as a 'piercing portrait' of Mexico.