Mexican authorities rescue 134 migrants from closed box trailer

More than 300 migrants were rescued by Mexican authorities yesterday in the state of Veracruz . In one of the cases, a group of more than 130 Central American migrants , including several children, were rescued from a closed box trailer.

Members of SEDENA (Ministry of National Defense) and Federal Police conducted several raids in the state, which led to the rescue of 134 migrants from a trailer, according to initial statements. Among the migrants were 71 children, 36 men, and 27 women who had been locked up in an abandoned closed box trailer on Highway 180 in Veracruz .

However, Federal Police reports indicated that there were 138 migrants rescued (73 minors, 37 men, and 28 women) and that they were all from Honduras.

Early reports showed that a Federal Police station in Tuxpan had received an anonymous tip that a trailer with a refrigerated box had been abandoned in the Ozuluama municipality and that there were screams coming out of the box.

Upon arrival, Federal Police agents broke the safety locks and rescued the migrants, some of whom showed signs of dehydration.

Raids at the port

Agents of Naval Police and the National Migration Institute (INM) began a series of raids to arrest Cental American migrants at the port of Veracruz, according to local authorities.

The agents entered a dozen of hotels and hostels in the Veracruz municipality, where they arrested 270 suspects from different countries, though most of them were Honduran.

INM delegate Edgar González

informed that it was one of the largest operations ever conducted in the region against migrants.

The Veracruz port is an obligated passage way for many migrants trying to make their way into the United States .

The suspects were taken to the Acayucan Migration Station in Veracruz.

Another raid in Chiapas

Around 100 soldiers and INM agents arrested dozens of Central Americans who were traveling on board a cargo train in the southern state of Chiapas, according to the AP news agency .

Many of the migrants attempted to escape by running on top of the wagons, while others climbed out of the train and ran toward the bushes.

Though Mexican authorities filled three vehicles with migrants, a few hundred managed to escape.

So far, the Migration Institute has not revealed any details on operations in Chiapas and Veracruz.

Mexico deploys 15,000 troops on U.S. border to halt migration

dm