Story highlights
Malcolm Shabazz died at a hospital from injuries from an apparent beating, police say
He was the grandson of Malcolm X
Shabazz had been at "a place of recreation" in Mexico City, prosecutors said
He was found injured early Thursday
The grandson of civil rights activist Malcolm X, Malcolm Shabazz, died in a Mexico City hospital after suffering an apparent beating, police told CNN.
Prosecutors are investigating the death as a homicide, police spokesman Octavio Campos said.
Police were called to the scene of an injured man at 3:30 a.m. Thursday one block south of Plaza Garibaldi, a rough but famous patch of Mexico City known for its mariachis.
Shabazz appeared to have been beaten, but had no wounds from other weapons, Campos said.
The 29-year-old was transported to Mexico City’s Balbuena General Hospital, where he died later Thursday morning because of his injuries, he said.
The prosecutor’s office said in a statement that Shabazz had been at “a place of recreation” and had been drinking beers that night.
“To all who knew him, he offered kindness, encouragement and hope for a better tomorrow,” the Shabazz family said in a statement Friday. “Although his bright light and boundless potential are gone from this life, we are grateful that he now rests in peace in the arms of his grandparents and the safety of God.”
A U.S. State Department spokeswoman was aware that a U.S. citizen had died in Mexico, but declined to comment further.
“I was saddened, stunned, shocked, to read about the murder of young Malcolm,” former Georgia congresswoman Cynthia McKinney said. The former lawmaker had taken Shabazz under her wing and he had traveled with her to Libya on a trip.
“Many of my closest associates have personal memories of their time with him and of his efforts to reach out to them for help,” McKinney said. “He was writing a book.”
CNN’s Marlena Baldacci, Nick Valencia and Sunny Hostin contributed to this report.