EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – Authorities in Veracruz found human remains wrapped in plastic bags and kept in refrigerators and ice boxes in five homes in the city of Poza Rica, a newspaper reported. The remains could belong to up to 34 missing individuals, according to La Jornada.

The bags were found Sunday during a joint search by Veracruz state police and the Mexican Army (SEDENA); two men and a woman are in custody and several vehicles have been seized, La Jornada reported.

La Opinion, a local news portal, on Monday published photos of some of the homes raided by Mexican authorities. Some show uniformed police officers standing guard outside the houses, and others show broken metal doors in the aftermath of the searches.

The international news portal Infobae reported authorities were on to the houses following an early Sunday shootout between members of an organized criminal group and the police. The gang members fled to a home and apparently escaped, but police found the first of the chopped-up bodies in coolers there, Infobae reported.

The portal said violence in Poza Rica, located in an oil-rich region of Mexico, has increased recently due to the presence of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.