1 in 1,103 unaccompanied minors found on the streets in Mexico — Photo: Instituto Nacional de Migración 103 unaccompanied minors found on the streets in Mexico — Photo: Instituto Nacional de Migración
Mexican authorities found 103 unaccompanied minors in a group of 343 people in an abandoned truck in eastern Mexico, the government said on Monday (6).
“These are 103 unaccompanied minors, mostly from Guatemala,” reported the National Migration Institute of Mexico (INM).
The truck also carried 212 adults from Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Ecuador, as well as 28 other people “who form different family nuclei in Guatemala and El Salvador,” the immigration authorities said.
The vehicle, which was on a Veracruz state road as of Sunday evening (5), was without a driver, but INM agents and local prosecutors determined the presence of people in the trailer.
“The migrants wore colored bracelets for identification,” the statement said. This accessory is commonly used by human traffickers transporting foreigners to the MexicoUnited States border.
In addition to ventilation openings in the ceiling, the shovel of the truck has a double floor made of metal constructions and fans anchored below, the INM said.
Unaccompanied minors and their families have been under the care of social welfare authorities in Veracruz, while adults are clarifying their legal situation with immigration authorities.