11 Ex-Police Officers Get 50 Years In Prison For Killing 17 Migrants

In a shocking incident, Mexican former police officers killed and burned 17 migrants near the United States border in 2021. They were roaming freely for more than 2 years after conducting the crime. In September 2023, 11 former Mexican police officers were found guilty of murdering the migrants. 

On Tuesday, a Mexican court sentenced 11 former police officers to 50 years in prison each for killing the migrants in 2021. One officer was sentenced to 19 years in prison. 

What happened to 17 migrants?

Reportedly, 16 migrants from Guatemala – a Central American country south of Mexico – and 1 migrant from Honduras – a Central American country bordered to the west by Guatemala – were heading to the United States border in January 2021. 

The former police officers, who were members of an elite police group in the northern state of Tamaulipas, across the border from Texas, killed 17 migrants. They were shot dead and burned by Mexican ex-police officers near the US border. 

Tamaulipas state attorney-general, Irving Barrios Mojica, said that the former Mexican cops killed 19 people, including 17 migrants and 2 Mexican citizens. 

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What happened to ex-police officers?

Previously, 12 ex-police officers were charged with murder of migrants. They were convicted of homicide and abuse of authority. After investigation, the 12th officer was convicted only of abuse of authority. They were members of the 150-member Special Operations Group. 

The prosecutor’s office obtained information against 11 Mexican police officers. Reportedly, 11 ex-police officers killed 17 migrants and burned them. The dead bodies of the migrants and 2 Mexican people were found in a truck in Camargo, Mexico. The truck holding the dead bodies had 113 bullet holes. 

Luis Rodríguez Bucio, Former General Commissioner of the Federal Police of Mexico, said that 11 former police officers were sentenced to 50 years in prison. The 12th officer was sentenced to 19 years in prison. 

Marco Antonio Mariño, the vice president of the Tamaulipas Federation of Business Chambers, previously said, “If any attention had been paid, perhaps today we would not be mourning the deaths of migrants.”