EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – Five suspected members of transnational criminal organizations preying on migrants along the Mexico-Arizona border now find themselves in the crosshairs of law enforcement officials in two countries.
Their photos of the five will be featured in posters as part of the “Se Busca Informacion” (Seeking Information) initiative between U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the government of Mexico.
No names were disclosed, but the program usually goes after members of transnational criminal organizations engaged in either human or drug smuggling on both sides of the border. Two of the fugitives are known to operate in the Yuma, Arizona-Los Algodones, Mexico area, while the other three are wanted by Tucson Sector agents. The Tucson Sector includes most of Eastern Arizona, which borders Nogales and Agua Prieta, Sonora.
“Each day in the field, our Border Patrol agents encounter vulnerable families and children that have been lied to by human smugglers working for opportunistic criminal organizations,” U.S Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz said. “This is a call to continue battling illicit networks who plague known regions of transit in our communities and are responsible for far too many deaths, including innocent children.”
The fugitives’ photos are placed on posters, flyers, and billboards in heavily traveled locations throughout the region. In Mexico, they are displayed on bulletins, billboards, and posters along city streets, CBP said. Posters also will be displayed at U.S. Border Patrol stations, immigration checkpoints, and international ports of entry in the Tucson and Yuma border region.
CBP started the binational “Most Wanted” program in South Texas in 2016 and has been expanding it westward every other year since.
Those who believe they have information about these criminals can confidentially report this information to law enforcement in Tucson at (520) 519-7002 and Yuma at (928) 341-6568 or (928) 341-6579 – where voice messages, texts, or WhatsApp can be used. The phone lines are open 24 hours a day
