Authorities found 103 unaccompanied minors, mostly from Guatemala, inside an abandoned truck trailer in the eastern Mexican state of Veracruz.
Key points:
- The minors were mostly from Guatemala, with adult migrants also from Honduras, El Salvador, and Ecuador
- The trailer was partially ventilated and appeared modified to accommodate the large number of people
- The children will be placed into the legal custody of the state
In addition to the 103 children, authorities found 212 adults from Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and Ecuador in the trailer, the National Migration Institute (INM) said in a statement.
Another 28 migrants travelling as families from Guatemala and El Salvador were also in the trailer, bringing the total number of passengers to 343.
The Mexican government said it was one of the biggest recent discoveries of migrant children travelling through the country.
Authorities discovered the trailer abandoned on a highway.
The truck, which had no driver, was outfitted with fans, a partially ventilated roof, and a structure that created a second level inside the trailer.
A photo that INM distributed showed plastic bottles and other trash strewn across the floor of the long, narrow compartment.
The children will be put into the custody of Veracruz’s family services system while the other migrants will be processed to determine their legal status in Mexico, INM said.
Earlier this year, Mexican authorities found 57 unaccompanied minors from Guatemala at a checkpoint near the US-Mexico border, and 20 other unaccompanied minors in a group of mostly Central Americans in the southern state of Chiapas.
Reuters