72 Bodies found on a ranch in Mexico.....

The Mexican navy has discovered 72 bodies on a ranch in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, Mexico, a statement released by the agency said.

The bodies of 58 men and 14 women were found above ground Tuesday on the ranch about 14 miles (22 kilometers) away from San Fernando, a city of about 25,000 off Mexico's gulf coast and about 100 miles south of the U.S. border. The navy called it one of the largest discoveries of bodies in Mexico's 4-year-old war on organized crime.

Members of the Mexican navy were tipped off about the gruesome, makeshift, burial ground after a man who was suffering from a gunshot wound came to a navy checkpoint seeking help. The man said a criminal gang had injured him, according to the navy statement.

"The navy went to the area where the man came from and encountered gunfights. A naval officer was killed and three of the delinquents were killed," an officer who answered the phone at the navy's communication department told CNN. The officer, who was not authorized to speak on the record, declined to give his name.

During the confrontation, the navy found a stash of weapons, including camouflage uniforms, bulletproof vests and four trucks disguised to look like vehicles from the Ministry of National Defense, the statement said.

The discovery of the 72 bodies was made after the gunfights, according to the navy officer who answered the phone. He said the bodies were inside a structure on the ranch.

"The federal government strongly condemns the barbaric acts committed by criminal organizations and reaffirms its commitment to the rule of law. The whole society must condemn such acts which illustrate the absolute need to continue fighting crime in the strongest terms by the Mexican state to achieve the peace we demand," the navy statement added.