By Maribel Velazquez
Texas authorities are investigating a possible human trafficking case after the discovery of seven immigrants killed related to freight trains in different areas of the state.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) confirmed that three of the victims were Mexican, after the Laredo Police Department reported the discovery of six bodies inside a container.
Hours later, Bexar County authorities located a seventh dead person near the railroad tracks in San Antonio, about 257 kilometers from Laredo. According to the first investigations, the man could be related to the same group of immigrants.
“The most feasible scenario is that it is a person from Mexico who was transported illegally inside one of these containers“Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar stated during a press conference.
According to authorities, a family member of the victim contacted police after receiving a message where The man claimed to feel bad due to the intense heat inside the railway car.
The Webb County medical examiner confirmed that among the victims located in Laredo there were five men and one woman. One of the deceased could be a minor, although his identity has not yet been officially confirmed.
The first forensic reports indicate that hyperthermia would have been the predominant cause of death. On Sunday, the day of the discovery, temperatures in the region reached 105 degrees Fahrenheit, equivalent to more than 40 degrees Celsius.
The coroner’s office preliminarily identified a 29-year-old Mexican woman and a 24-year-old Honduran man. “It is very possible that hyperthermia was the cause of death of the entire group,” medical authorities said in a statement.
The Mexican Foreign Ministry reported that it maintains permanent contact with US authorities and with the families of the victims to provide consular assistance, correct support and eventual repatriation of the remains.
“Deepest of the protection department will maintain contact with the families of the identified Mexican people,” the SRE said in an official statement.
The case also raised new questions about human smuggling operations that use freight trains to move immigrants into the United States.
A Union Pacific spokesperson said: the railway company collaborates with the authorities in investigations. “We are deeply saddened by this incident,” the company said.
Keep reading:
- 8-year-old boy is rescued in Arizona, an alleged trafficker linked to a Mexican cartel is arrested
- 6 members of the Aragua Train who exploited women and trafficked migrants are arrested in Mexico.
