'Narcos' Location Scout Shot and Found Dead In Mexico

“Narcos” location scout Carlos Muñoz Portal was shot dead in Mexico while searching for places to film the hit Netflix show’s fourth season. The 37-year-old scout’s body was found in his car with multiple gunshots all over. Muñoz Portal was in the violent region of Mexico when the murder was committed. He was found in the rural community of San Bartolo Actopan in the municipality of Temascalapa, a remote town in Mexico state, according to a report by El Paīs.

Brutal death for one of ‘Narcos’ very own

According to The Los Angeles Times, the area where Muñoz Portal was shot is close to the border of Mexican state Hidalgo, where homicide rates are high. Back in July this year, 182 homicide cases were reported which has a ratio of 12.2 for every 100,000 inhabitants. Local reports say that the authorities haven’t figured out the facts that led to Muñoz Portal’s death yet. “Given the small population of the area, we have no witnesses,” a spokesman for the Attorney General of the State of Mexico said. “We do not know if he was in Hidalgo and was followed from there or if he was in the State of Mexico and fled to Hidalgo.”
One of Muñoz Portal’s friends (who remained anonymous) said that the people in the area might have been threatened by the presence of a foreigner with a camera. “Maybe they thought he was collecting information and they started tracking him in a car,” he said.
Netflix issued a statement regarding Muñoz Portal’s brutal death. “We are aware of the passing of Carlos Muñoz Portal, a well-respected location scout, and send our condolences to his family,” the streaming service said. “The facts surrounding his death are still unknown as authorities continue to investigate.”
Production for “Narcos” Season 4 was moving from Colombia to Mexico as the new narrative will take on the story of the Juarez drug cartel. But in line with this tragic news, it is unclear if the production will still push through with shooting in Mexico.
Muñoz Portal has scouting credits in films like the Daniel Craig-led James Bond film “Spectre,” “The Fast & Furious” franchise and “Sicario.” Among his other scouting credits include “Man on Fire,” “The Legend of Zorro,” “Apocalypto,” and “Elysium.” Muñoz Portal’s death joins the recent tragic accidents that have happened to production crew members John Bernecker of “The Walking Dead” and Joi “SJ” Harris of “Deadpool 2.”