Worrisome Insecurity On Some Roads In Mexico

"Sol Prendido" for Borderland Beat

Video translation is as follows:

Female Reporter: Driving on some of the roads or paths has become a risky situation. It is due to the reports of assaults, kidnappings, and disappearances reported by drivers and relatives who seek to travel from one place to another. Transport drivers are the ones who suffer the most from this crime.

According to this industry, five hundred and fifty-two billion tons of products are mobilized annually. But they have had economic losses of more than ninety million pesos due to the theft of units and merchandise.

Many cargo vehicles are immobilized on the roads causing the driver to believe that it is an accident.

Antonio Guzmán: They pretend to be involved in accidents or pretend to be broken down. Or suddenly they start to decrease their speed and traffic is at a standstill. And that's when you get robbed.

Female Reporter: From January to May, five thousand thirty-three robberies were registered from freight transporters, most of them in the State of Mexico and Veracruz. This crime just doesn’t involve theft of merchandise or vehicles. In recent days there were reports of assaults on several motorists in one of the Arco Norte sections. Some people recorded how various subjects assaulted them on the early morning of June 23rd.

Male Driver: It seems like there’s an individual hanging off of someone’s tractor trailer.

Female Reporter: While on the Nuevo Laredo - Monterrey highway, a route used by drug traffickers, seventy-three people have been reported missing from January to June of this year. After several months of demanding that the authorities of Nuevo León and Tamaulipas search for the victims. It was just this July that a security operation began to protect the road. Assaults as happened to a family last week are also reported.

Trucker: Hey. How are you guys doing, are you ok?

Young male: Thank God we're ok.

Trucker: Oh gosh. Thank God you're all ok.

Female Reporter: The roads are also roadblocked due to criminal groups fighting to keep the drug corridor. This type of crime is similar to what happens in Tierra Caliente, Michoacán Where the highway that connects Aguililla with Apatzingán has been destroyed in three of its sections.

This prevents the passage of merchandise to the communities. And in turn it causes the shortage of basic products.

Meanwhile in Reynosa, Tamaulipas the roads are constantly road blocked. And on occasion it’s being done to threaten the authorities. In addition to demand the release of their leaders.

ADN 40