Migrant fingers, ears cut off if they can’t pay cartels: report

MaryAnn Martinez

Migrants waiting to get into the US who don’t have money to pay cartels’ ransoms can get fingers and ears chopped off, a shelter volunteer working near a Texas border city has claimed.

The revelation reported by NBC News highlighted the dangers faced by migrants on the border, who have decided against crossing into the US since Title 42 ended May 11 when the US government said it would apply penalties to those who cross without the relevant paperwork.

As Title 42 ended Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz claimed there were 60,000 migrants in the “immediate border area” on the Mexican side waiting to cross into the US.

Cartels have resumed their tactic of kidnapping migrants from Central and South America who are waiting in Mexican cities for their chance to cross into the US and holding them ransom.

“Every day is worse; everyone is afraid to leave,” the volunteer at the shelter in Reynosa, Mexico told NBC.

Earlier this month 49 migrants, including 11 children, were kidnapped off a bus as they passed through the city of Monterrey but were later rescued by the Mexican army.

An areal view of Senda de Vida shelter where migrants who requested an appointment in the United States using the CBP ONE wait in Reynosa, Mexico-- near McAllen, Texas. — An areal view of Senda de Vida shelter where migrants who requested an appointment in the United States using the CBP ONE wait in Reynosa, Mexico — near McAllen, Texas.

The Mexican government said it rescued a total of 2,115 migrants who had been kidnapped by gangs in 2022.

Migrants who are taken captive by cartel members have their cell phones taken away and have been dismembered if their families or friends in their home countries in the US are unable to pay a ransom.

Fear of kidnapping or other violence has added to migrants’ confusion on the Southern Border.

Many are now staying in Mexico, unsure what Title 8, the immigration law now being applied, means for them.

Title 8 carries legal penalties for illegal immigrants — including deportation to the person’s home country, a five-year ban from the US, and jail time and criminal prosecution for those who make a second attempt to gain access.

Migrants who requested an appointment for asylum in the United States using the CBP ONE wait to be notified a shelter in Reynosa, Mexico. — Migrants who requested an appointment for asylum in the United States using the CBP ONE wait to be notified at a shelter in Reynosa, Mexico.

Faced with that prospect many people see the people-smuggling cartels as their best chance to make it over to the US.

In May alone Oritz has admitted to around 30,000 “gotaways” who evaded detection as they sneaked over the border, in his weekly reports via Twitter.

By comparison, Title 42 did not carry any legal consequences, which led to many migrants attempting to sneak into the country illegally several times.

At Case del Migrante, a Reynosa shelter, many migrants are waiting to score appointments through the CBP One App, which give 1,000 migrants a day the chance to apply online and legally enter the country to claim asylum.

However, many have told of using the notoriously bug-ridden app for months and still not getting an appointment, pushing many to a state of desperation.

A rare moment of joy as a migrant in Reynosa, Mexico learned that he was granted an asylum appointment request through the government's CBP One App. — A rare moment of joy as a migrant in Reynosa, Mexico learned that he was granted an asylum appointment request through the government’s CBP One App.

An average of 1,070 migrants a day have already used the government’s app to secure an appointment since May 12, the day after Title 42 ended.

In Tijuana, the director of another shelter for migrants predicted even Title 8’s penalties won’t stop some — who might risk sneaking into the US.

“They don’t understand the difficulty of crossing,” Father Pat Murphy stated. “They all think that they are going to win, that they all got a lottery ticket and they are going to win. It’s an illusion.”

https://nypost.com/2023/05/22/migrants-fingers-ears-cut-off-if-they-cant-pay-cartels-report/