In 2022, 367 migrants died while crossing the border into Texas from Coahuila. This year, there have been 10 fatalities as the region continues to perform as one of the busiest human smuggling corridors to date.
The most recent fatalities took place over the weekend when U.S. authorities recovered the body of a migrant on the banks of the Rio Grande east of Piedras Negras, near the Kickapoo Reservation. Authorities on both sides of the border worked to recover two other bodies over the weekend, bringing the total to 10 in 2023.
According to a review of statistics kept by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Coahuila Attorney General’s Office, in 2022, authorities recovered 367 bodies in the shared border zone. While a large number of fatalities were drownings, other cases dealt with exposure to the elements and other causes.
The record-setting figures come at a time when Mexican authorities are issuing temporary travel permits to migrants to the northern border. In Piedras Negras and Ciudad Acuna, migrants arrive from Monterrey-based buses to avoid cartel violence common in other cities like Reynosa and Nuevo Laredo. Cartels operating in those cities have made a name for themselves for kidnapping, extorting, and abusing migrants.
Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to Mexico City and the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. The writers would face certain death at the hands of the various cartels that operate in those areas including the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas if a pseudonym were not used. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and their original Spanish. This article was written by “J.M. Martinez” and “C.E. Herrera” from Coahuila.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.