The authorities confirmed that although they have already been identified Seven Guatemalans among the 19 people massacred In La Concordia, Chiapas, Mexico, they have not yet been able to establish communication with their families and the bodies have not been claimed either.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Minex) indicated on Friday, July 5, 2024, that identities will be kept confidential until it is possible to make contact with relatives of the deceased.
“Since no communication has been received from possible relatives of the victims, support will be requested from municipal authorities in the place of origin of each one to locate the relatives. For the above, there is no possible date for repatriation until the first is defined.”the entity reported in response to queries from this media outlet.
Information regarding the possible identity of the victims began to circulate on social media. There was even a campaign to raise funds for the burial of a man who is said to be among the Guatemalans who died.
However, Minex said it is not possible to determine the veracity of the publications, since it will not provide further details regarding the identities or the place of origin of the seven Guatemalans.
Foreign Affairs previously reported that the identification process was carried out at verify identity documents and through the comparison of fingerprint records.
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On July 1st, the Secretariat of Security and Protection (SSP) Citizen of Mexico reported in a statement that “at least six of the deceased people were carrying identification issued by the Guatemalan government.”
In this regard, the Guatemalan authorities did not provide further details of the documentation to which the institution of the neighboring country referred.
Clash between Mexican drug traffickers
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador confirmed last Tuesday that a total of 19 people died in a violent armed confrontation between two drug cartels.
The president issued statements following a video was posted on social media showing the deceased wearing clothing and accessories designed for tactical operations, and also carrying long weapons.
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“The alleged perpetrators of the filming identify themselves as members of the Sinaloa Cartel and point to the victims as members of a criminal organization that allegedly operates between Chiapas and Guatemala,” the Mexican Security Secretariat specified.
“All the bodies found inside the dump truck were wearing dark clothing and tactical vests, and each of them was found to have firearm magazines,” the Attorney General’s Office of the State of Mexico also noted.
The bodies were found, as seen in the images, inside the truck cabin, but others were also found around the vehicle with signs of violence, according to the investigative entity.
“In the back of the dump truck, 14 men were found murdered by firearm, two more in the cabin, two on the side and one more, approximately 100 meters from the vehicle, which had high-caliber bullet impacts,” describes the statement from the Mexican Security Secretariat.
President López Obrador confirmed at a press conference that everything points to the confrontation being between the Sinaloa Cartel and the Chiapas Cartel, which are fighting for control of Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala.
The president acknowledged that it was a “regrettable confrontation” in the border area between criminal groups seeking to dominate the region motivated by drug trafficking and migrant trafficking.
Following the incident, the Federal Government sent 200 agents to reinforce security in that region of Chiapas, while the Army and the National Civil Police of Guatemala confirmed that they are also carrying out combined patrols to confront possible actions by organized crime on the border.
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