A group of armed individuals has abducted 31 migrants from a bus in the northeastern region of Mexico, close to the US border.

Reported by the newspaper Reforma and attributed to Jorge Cuéllar, the spokesman for Tamaulipas state’s security authority, the bus, carrying a total of 36 passengers, was forcibly stopped by a convoy of five vehicles near Reynosa. The migrants were forcibly removed from the bus during this incident, which occurred on a Saturday evening.

Most of the abducted individuals were reportedly from Venezuela and were heading to scheduled asylum appointments with US authorities. This occurrence sheds light on the perilous journey that migrants undertake through Mexico, aiming to reach safety from the adversities of poverty, violence, and political turmoil in their home countries.

Traversing Mexico poses grave dangers for migrants, often leading to abductions orchestrated by drug cartels seeking ransom payments from the migrants’ families.

In a separate but related incident, Tamaulipas security authorities disclosed that an additional five kidnapped migrants were rescued by the National Guard. They were located within a vehicle along the highway connecting Monterrey and Matamoros. During this rescue operation, two suspects managed to flee on foot.

Contrary to initial confusion, a report from Grupo Fórmula clarified that this particular rescue was distinct from the abduction involving the 31 individuals near Reynosa.