Government Working to Reunite Families with Survivors of Failed Human Smuggling Operation Nomaan Merchant - The Associated Press
go to original July 27, 2017

Rogelio Hernandez visits a makeshift memorial on July 26, 2017, in the parking lot of a Walmart where authorities Sunday discovered a tractor-trailer packed with immigrants in San Antonio. (Eric Gay/AP)

Mexican government officials said Wednesday they were working to reunite families with some of the survivors of a failed human smuggling operation and had been assured by U.S. immigration officials that they would not question relatives about their legal status in the United States.

Ten immigrants, including seven from Mexico, died after a sweltering ride from the Texas border city of Laredo in a tractor-trailer without air conditioning on Sunday. Another of the dead was identified as being from Guatemala; two others were not publicly identified.

At least 29 immigrants survived, according to U.S. officials. Twelve remained hospitalized Wednesday in San Antonio.

The driver of the big rig, James Matthew Bradley Jr., waived a detention hearing that had been scheduled for Thursday and remained in federal custody, charged with illegally transporting immigrants for financial gain, resulting in death. Federal court records indicated a new hearing was set for Aug. 23, when Bradley was expected to a give video deposition. The 60-year-old Florida trucker could face the death penalty, if convicted.

Latin American diplomats worked, meanwhile, to confirm names of the dead and injured, most of who were not publicly identified.

The top Mexican diplomatic official in San Antonio said relatives of some of the immigrants didn’t even know their family members had left for the United States. Consular officials were working to notify families, repatriate bodies and arrange hospital visits for relatives of the survivors.

Read the rest at The Globe and Mail

Related: Survivors of Smuggling Trip Could Gain Entry to U.S. by Becoming Witnesses (The New York Times)

Related: One of the Victims of the Tragic San Antonio Smuggling Case Was a Guatemalan DREAMer Trying to Get Back Home (Remezcla)

Related: Poverty, Jobs and Debt Drove Migrants to Suffocating Texas Truck (Reuters)

Related: Human Smuggling is a Deadly Problem — and Hardline Immigration Policies Will Make It Worse (Mic)

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