Abducted Migrants Freed by Captors, Not Mexican Authorities, President López Obrador Clarifies
Summary from the AllSides News Team
A group of migrants who were abducted near Mexico’s border were freed by their captors, despite earlier reports that they were rescued by Mexican authorities.
The Details: A bus carrying mostly Venezuelan migrants was intercepted by armed men near the U.S.-Mexico border, and its 32 passengers were held in captivity for days. Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said on Thursday that the captors had let them go and left them in the parking lot of a shopping center in Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas. No arrests were made, according to Obrador.
For Context: Record numbers of migrant encounters at the southern border have made immigration a top issue in the upcoming presidential election. One of the main threats migrants face is being kidnapped by organized crime groups in Mexico. López Obrador has often been criticized for being soft on crime and allowing cartels to become de facto leaders of sorts.
Key Quotes: López Obrador said kidnappers "decided to let them go free" upon realizing there was a high presence of authorities in the area searching for them. "The investigation is ongoing. For now, let's celebrate that they were released alive" and "safe and sound," he added.
How The Media Covered It: Media across the spectrum covered the story similarly, clarifying the difference from earlier reports. Financial Times (Center bias) featured some analysis and a lot of context in its story, from immigration’s current weight in U.S. politics to the hardships migrants face on the trail.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Right
32 migrants kidnapped near US-Mexico border were freed, not rescued, AMLO clarifies![AllSides Media Bias Rating: Right AllSides Media Bias Rating: Right](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/bias-right.png)
![](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/styles/feature_image_300x200/public/AP23094658854991.jpeg?itok=v4TTjRm7)
Migrants from several countries abducted from a bus and held by armed men for days near Mexico’s border with Texas were released by their captors, not rescued as initially reported by authorities, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Thursday.
"They decided to let them go," López Obrador said during his morning press briefing. The 32 migrants — authorities corrected the initial number of 31 after discovering there was a baby among the group that had not been included because it hadn’t purchased a bus ticket — were from Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Honduras and...
From the Center
Mexico rescues 32 migrants kidnapped near US border![AllSides Media Bias Rating: Center AllSides Media Bias Rating: Center](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/bias-center.png)
![](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/styles/feature_image_300x200/public/ftcms8fafc7ad-b7bb-4c76-9d72-5c0.jpeg?itok=6PTSQZVn)
Mexican officials said they had found 32 Latin American migrants who were kidnapped near the southern US border over the weekend, as record numbers of people make treacherous journeys to try to reach the US.
The migrants from Latin American countries such as Venezuela and Ecuador had been on a coach from Monterrey to Matamoros, which borders Texas, when they were detained on Saturday, public security minister Rosa Icela Rodriguez said on Wednesday. They were forced off the coach by armed masked men and into five vans, she said.
“These...
From the Left
Mexico’s president clarifies that 32 abducted migrants were freed, not rescued![AllSides Media Bias Rating: Lean Left AllSides Media Bias Rating: Lean Left](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/bias-leaning-left.png)
Migrants from several countries abducted from a bus and held by armed men for days near Mexico’s border with Texas were released by their captors, not rescued as initially reported by authorities, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Thursday.
“They decided to let them go,” López Obrador said during his morning press briefing. The 32 migrants — authorities corrected the initial number of 31 after discovering there was a baby among the group that had not been included because it hadn’t purchased a bus ticket — were from Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela,...
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