EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – A ransom call led police in Juarez, Mexico, to a house where nine migrants were being kept against their will.
Officers with the Intelligence Unit of the Chihuahua state police were able to trace the call received by a family in Queretaro, Mexico, to the home on a street called Chavez in Juarez.
It was the latest in a series of calls the family had been receiving from kidnappers since their relative went missing after arriving in Juarez on July 4. The call was made from the relative’s cellphone, whose location was traced by officers on Tuesday.
The state police surrounded the home and officers went in after hearing people inside screaming for help, the agency said in a statement. Eight Mexican citizens and a Salvadoran woman were freed, including the man whose cellphone had been used by the kidnappers.
The migrants received a medical screening and were taken to a shelter by agents with Mexico’s National Migration Institute. Mexican citizens are usually allowed to go on their way unless they need temporary housing. Foreign nationals usually remain in custody until INM determines their immigration status.
The state police did not report any arrests.
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