Mexican police rescue 23 Ecuadorians held by kidnappers in Ciudad Juarez, at the U.S. border

At least 23 Ecuadorians were freed from kidnappers by Mexican police early Saturday in Ciudad Juarez on the Mexican-U.S. border. The rescue was first reported by the U.S.-based migration service 1800Migrante.com and later confirmed by the Mexico Prosecutor’s Office.

Michelle Guevara and her partner Wilson Oña are two of the Ecuadorians rescued Saturday from kidnappers in Mexico.

“We have received multiple calls from relatives of Ecuadorians rescued from kidnappers in Juarez and the news has now been confirmed,” said William Murillo, 1800Migrante spokesperson. Among those rescued were 29-year-old Michelle Guevara and her partner Wilson Oña, whose disappearnce had been widely reported in the Ecuadorian media.

The relatives of those released contacted the 1800Migrante asking about the process to bring them back to Ecuador. The fact that there is no Ecuadorian consulate or embassy in Mexico has complicated repatriation efforts, according to 1800Migrante.

“My daughter told me that they want to return to Ecuador, that they have been through hell and that they want to come back as soon as possible, but we do not know what to do,” said Noemí Carrera, mother of Michelle.

Several of those rescued have been taken to Juarez hospitals, some in critical condition due to injuries and lack of food and water. Hospital management says it will notify the government and 1800Migrante after they access the patients.

Mexican authorities have released little information about the rescue operation, saying they are in the process of arresting the kidnappers and need the cooperation of the Ecuadorian migrants to gather more information. “Michelle told me that they cannot return to Ecuador immediately since they are witnesses and prosecutors need them to testify against the criminals,” Carrera said. She added that it may be as long as 15 days before they will be allowed to leave.

“Since they have not committed crimes and are, in fact, victims of crime, the Mexican government must provide security guarantees that they will be protected from retribution,” Murillo said. “Authorities must also talk to family members in Ecuador about the extortion demands they have received from the kidnappers.”

According to 1800Mgrante, the successful rescue was the result of coordinated work between the organization, families and law enforcement agencies from Mexico, Ecuador and the U.S.

“We thank Mexican authorities for the rescue but are painfully aware that, unfortunately, there are dozens of other migrants still held by kidnappers in different cities of Mexico,” said Murillo.