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Friday, December 24, 2010

Kidnappers of 50 Mexican Migrants Make Ransom Call

By Eduardo Castillo
Associated Press

Migrants in Mexico are easy prey for kidnapper who rob, rape and killed them after holding them for randsom. Mexican authorities have looked the other way when cases of abuse come up all too often.

The supposed kidnappers of 50 Central American migrants who disappeared in southern Mexico last week called a family in the United States demanding a ransom, a Roman Catholic priest who first reported the abductions said Thursday.

But they contacted relatives of a migrant who had escaped after the Dec. 16 assault, said the Rev. Alejandro Solalinde, who runs a migrant shelter in the southern state of Oaxaca.

The abductors probably thought he was still in the group, Solalinde told The Associated Press in a telephone interview, adding that he reported the call to Central American and Mexican authorities.

"We're calling the governments of Central America in case they know of any other calls for ransom," he said.

It was another apparent confirmation of the massive abduction, which Mexican authorities initially denied when they were contacted by the foreign ministry of El Salvador on Tuesday with the complaint.

Witnesses said the majority of those kidnapped are Salvadorans, and Salvadoran Foreign Minister Hugo Martinez continued his criticism of Mexico for initially ignoring the abduction, calling the government's response "hasty and unfortunate."

"We believe you can't deal with these problems by ignoring them," he told a news conference Wednesday night. "Rather, they should be recognized and thoroughly investigated."

Mexico's ministries of the interior and foreign relations released a joint statement Thursday promising to step up the investigation into the alleged abductions and asking Central American governments to provide them with any information they have on the case.

Besides El Salvador, the 30 men, 15 women and five children are from Honduras and Guatemala, according to witnesses, who are being interviewed by the Mexican Attorney General's Office. The kidnapping allegedly happened near Chahuites, Oaxaca, after gunmen held up a train in which the migrants were traveling.

The alleged crime comes just months after the horrific massacre of 72 mostly Central American migrants in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas in August, a tragedy that caused Mexico to replace its top immigration official in September.

That massacre has been blamed on the Zetas drug gang. Solalinde said he has information that the supposed kidnappers of the 50 also have ties to the Zetas. Mexican authorities would not comment on a possible connection.

It was not clear how the criminals would have gotten information about the family of an escaped migrant, but Solalinde said he knows of cases in which abductors travel for a while with migrants before kidnapping them to gain their confidence.

Mexico is the transit route for thousands of illegal migrants seeking to reach the United States, with many falling victim to gangs and organized crime.

Witnesses reported that those kidnapped were beaten with machetes and their belongings were taken.

The victims minutes earlier had escaped a raid on the same train by Mexican police and military, in which they arrested 92 alleged illegal migrants.

The National Human Rights Commission reported in 2009 that nearly 10,000 migrants are kidnapped a year by gangs. The commission also has opened an investigation into last week's reported abduction.

7 comments:

  1. thiz iz proberly work of dumb azz zetas

    ReplyDelete
  2. yeap ...it seems to be there speciality

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  3. No,This is the work os the USA who pay the Zetas to help with the illegal problem.

    ReplyDelete
  4. i BELIEVE THE CATHOLIC CHURCH HAS TO TAKE SOME RESPONSIBILITY FOR THESE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS SITUATION.tHEY LET THE CENTRAL AMERICANS KNOW THAT THE CHURCH HAS SOME SAFE HOUSES IN MEXICO to help them along on their journey.Although they are illegal in Mexico as well as in the states,the church encourages to go on and go so far as to say a special mass for them to keep them safe.How many would just stay home if they knew there wasn't the church to help them in their illegal trip.I hear that some pay smugglers up to $10,000 dollars to get them to the states.If 5 or 6 of them would pool their money,I believe they could open a business at home.Just a thought.Back to the church.They should discourage them back at their home country because they know how dangerous the trip is even without the cartel and police extorting them along the way.Also if the mexican police had finished the job when they arrested the 92 minutes before they were kidnapped this wouldn't be an issue.Any thoughts?.

    ReplyDelete
  5. December 25 @ 5:36AM

    You had to post hate on a day of love.
    You are ignorant to say the least and on this holy day I will keep it simplistic...

    They would come anyway.
    Many die trying
    most never see/hear of shelters
    shelters house 50-100 and are few.

    I know this because I do not sit on my ass saying how wrong it is "unlawful" to feed and keep warm migrants that are raped, exorted, beaten, killed, and if they survive that, find themselves in a country stranded that the majority of people are highly prejudice aginst them and view them as less than human.

    I guess you would say I am a lawbreaker. I conducted a Christmas project for a CA shelter in northern Mx, yes ran by a priest. It was called PROJECT 72 and honored those 72 murdered in Tamps. I helped 104 migrants... each got a backpack filled with jackets, phone cards, a few pesos, cards, toiltries, rain ponchos, warm clothing, candies fresh fruit and a note of encouragement.

    so to you I say...put me in jail...
    it is inconceivable to me that a person can have no compassion for other humans

    ReplyDelete
  6. The 50 migrants were "rescued"

    http://www.efeamerica.com/309_hispanic-world/968018_mexican-police-rescue-50-farmworkers-from-captors.html

    ReplyDelete
  7. I expect a finger in the mail, lol. Stupid Zetas, too broke to buy their own crap.

    ReplyDelete

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