Mexico City - A criminal commando killed 12 people in the south-western Mexican Tabasco province in an act of revenge against a police officer and his family for arresting a gang of murder suspects, officials confirmed Sunday.

The extraordinary gruesome attack on Saturday evening took the lives of six children in Monte Largo, 50 kilometres south of the Tabasco capital Villahermosa.

Officials believed the motive was revenge against a police officer who helped arrest four suspected killers on Tuesday who were members of a criminal gang.

"A group of armed men forced their way into the homes of their victims and opened fire," a police spokesperson said Sunday.

The dead included the police officer, his family and several neighbours. Three people were also injured. dpa