Translated by Jesús Ronquillo / Circuito Frontera
Without naming names, as part of an international agreement, the United States and Mexico launched the “Se Busca Información” (which means to look for information) campaign, which consists of disseminating the photographs of 10 people associated with transnational criminal organizations in the El Paso and Ciudad Juarez area.
Click here for the Spanish version
Last Friday, at a press conference held at the Bridge of the Americas Port of Entry, U.S. and Mexican authorities presented an expansion of their joint “Se Busca Información” initiative.
These individuals are wanted for a variety of crimes, including migrant smuggling, narcotics trafficking and murder charges, and are being pursued by federal law enforcement authorities in both countries.
As a result, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the U.S. Border Patrol, the Office of Field Operations and the State of Chihuahua, along with other federal, state and local agencies on both sides of the border, agreed to cooperate and share information to achieve the arrest of these alleged criminals.
However, part of the agreement between the two nations was to release only photographs, so the names of the suspected criminals were not provided.
This initiative is intended to promote unity at the border and encourages the public in both countries to anonymously report any information indicating the whereabouts of these suspected criminals, helping to make the border more secure.
The hotlines are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and calls are routed directly to Border Patrol call centers in the El Paso Sector.
Photos of the 10 most wanted individuals are displayed on billboards, flyers and public announcements along the U.S.-Mexico border, on city streets in México and in commercial establishments.
As well as in the United States, they will be displayed on billboards at Border Patrol stations, immigration checkpoints and international ports of entry in the El Paso and New Mexico border regions.
To report relevant information about these criminals, the phone number 1-800-635-2509 is provided, in addition to 915-314-8194, where you can send voice messages, text messages or use messaging platforms such as WhatsApp.
César Jaúregui Moreno, Attorney General of the State of Chihuahua, referred that this strategy has been in operation since 2017 and, with it, more than 30 criminal targets have been identified to date.
Nelson Baldío, special advisor to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection commissioner, referred that the reports will be anonymous and that the campaign is focused on weaving a new approach to unprecedented collaboration.
“It is vital that we engage with the community on both sides of the border to enlist their help in finding these wanted criminals”, said Anthony “Scott” Good, chief agent of the U.S. Border Patrol’s El Paso Sector.
By increasing public interest through the ‘Information Wanted’ initiative, we increase our ability to gather intelligence and apprehend these violent criminals, creating safer border communities in both countries,” he added.
**It is important to note that an arrest or criminal complaint is simply a charge and should not be considered evidence of guilt. Subjects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
