The authorities of Guatemala and Mexico continue to investigate the whereabouts of 10 Guatemalan merchants who disappeared on November 16, 2023 in a region of Chiapas, Mexico, bordering Guatemala.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Minex) confirmed this Saturday, March 23, that, in follow-up to this case, the investigation proceedings currently coordinated with the Immigrant Prosecutor’s Office of the Attorney General’s Office of the State of Chiapas continue, in collaboration with the Prosecutor’s Office Against Illicit Trafficking of Migrants of the Public Ministry of Guatemala.
“Through the judicial collaboration mechanisms of the specialized prosecutors’ offices of both countries, they have followed up on the case in order to clarify the event that occurred and find the whereabouts of the compatriots,” describes the Minex statement.
The institution indicated that given the importance of the case and with the objective of protecting the life and integrity of those involved, the investigation is currently under reserve.
The Minex confirmed that other government entities are also involved in monitoring the case, such as the Consular Network in Comitán de Domínguez, in the State of Chiapas.
In addition, the Embassy of Guatemala in Mexico is providing support to the prosecutor’s offices within its scope of competence, mainly through consular assistance, care and protection of the people affected by this incident.
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Authorities revealed that they were investigating the disappearance of the group of Guatemalans on November 27, 2023, including a 17-year-old teenager.
In total there were 12 Guatemalans who traveled from Cuyotenango, Suchitepéquez to the border to sell growing chickens and 10 disappeared, as reported at the time by the Public Ministry (MP).
Two people from that group returned to Guatemala, as confirmed by relatives, but there was no communication from the rest.
Authorities are considering the possibility of kidnapping due to unrest in the border region between organized crime groups, the National Guard and the Mexican Army. However, until now this hypothesis remains part of the research process and has not been confirmed.
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They report another case of missing migrants
This Friday, March 22, 2024, Mexican authorities reported another case of supposedly kidnapped Ecuadorian migrantsapparently disappeared in the same area as the group of Guatemalans, on the southern border of Mexico.
To search for him, a joint operation of the Mexican armed forces, the National Guard and the Chiapas state police was deployed.
Following a complaint from the civil organization 1800Migrantethe joint operations bases in Tapachula were activated, however, the authorities did not confirm either the kidnapping or the number of missing people.
Despite this, searches were carried out in the indicated area, without results.
The organization warned about the increase in kidnappings of migrants in Mexico, while official data indicates an increase in 3.2% in kidnappings in 2023, with about a third of the victims being migrants.
Irregular migration through Mexico also increased significantly in the same period, according to data from the Migration Policy Unit of the Ministry of the Interior.
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