18 Kidnapped Central American Migrants Rescued By Marines in Northeast Mexico

Mexico City, Mexico (EFE) – Marines rescued 18 kidnapped Central American migrants and arrested four suspects, including two minors, over the weekend in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, Mexican media reported.

Two of the suspects, identified as Pablo Oziel Escobedo Ortiz and Itzia Guadalupe Deyanira Garza Castillo, were detained on Saturday at the house in the Petrolera district of the city of Altamira where the migrants - 15 Hondurans and three Guatemalans - were being held.

The operation was made possible by a tip from the public, media reports said, citing federal and state security officials.

Ten of the migrants found at the house are minors, media reports said.

Tens of thousands of Central Americans undertake the hazardous journey across Mexico each year on their way to the United States.

The trek is a dangerous one, with criminals and corrupt Mexican officials preying on the migrants.

Gangs kidnap, exploit and murder migrants, who are often targeted in extortion schemes, Mexican officials say.

U.S. officials are currently dealing with a wave of arrivals of unaccompanied Central American minors at the U.S.-Mexican border.