Mexican singer and soap-opera star Lucero has come under criticism on social networks and in the media for photographs in which she and her boyfriend, businessman Michel Kuri, pose alongside the dead bodies of hunted animals.

The photos published in a gossip magazine - including one with Lucero's face stained red, as is customary with first-time hunters - have sparked outrage among web users, many of whom posted sarcastic remarks.

The magazine said a series of photos showing the 44-year-old celebrity and Kuri, a 50-year-old nephew of Mexican business tycoon Carlos Slim, holding rifles and posing with dead animals had been sent to its editorial desk.

Some of the Internet posts refer to Lucero's children because they are also seen in the photos firing rifles. Amid the outrage, Lucero issued a statement indicating that the photos were intended to remain private and had nothing to do with hunting.

"I'm extremely annoyed and I think it's unbelievable that they stole photos of my private life and published them. What's most uncalled for is that they mixed photos of different moments and activities making it seem that everything happened at the same time," the celebrity said.

Lucero said her children were photographed in an "isolated incident" while shooting blanks with air rifles, adding that the activity was supervised by adult experts.