Finding missing migrants in the deadly Arizona desert at the U.S.-Mexico border

3 weeks ago 28

Inside unpaid hunt for missing migrants

CBS News joins volunteers searching for missing migrants connected unsafe path 05:25

Ajo, Arizona — The hunt began with a supplication successful the aboriginal greeting hours, arsenic the prima emerged from the mountains that adorn this picturesque, yet often deadly, scenery adjacent the U.S.-Mexico border.

It was the 3rd hunt that a grassroots radical of volunteers known arsenic the Armadillos had embarked connected this summertime with the hopes of uncovering José Salinas Pineda, a 21-year-old Mexican migrant who had been missing since aboriginal June.

Back successful their homes successful confederate California, the volunteers are operation workers, gardeners and cablemen. Like the radical they look for, astir are besides immigrants. But successful the desolate Arizona desert, the volunteers stock a humanitarian mission: to connection immoderate closure to distraught families by uncovering the remains of their loved ones.

"For me, it is not just that this idiosyncratic stays here, successful this place," said Roberto Resendiz arsenic the Armadillos huddled astir him for a bilingual pep speech earlier the search. Resendiz, 48, is 1 of the leaders of the group.

The hunt for 21-year-old Jose Luis Pineda Salinas wrong the distant and rugged Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument successful Arizona started minutes aft sunrise.

By this place, Resendiz meant the barren Sonoran Desert. Migrants transverse it each time to scope the U.S., contempt the dangers of traversing an inhospitable terrain successful temperatures that scope the triple digits during the summer.

Donning boots, shin guards, walking sticks and overstuffed backpacks, the volunteers carried ample amounts of water, electrolytes, cereal bars, aesculapian kits and homemade woody crosses to people sightings of migrant remains.

As they began to scour a immense country wrong the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, the volunteers lone had 3 clues to find Salinas Pineda. They were told his traveling companions abandoned the young migrant erstwhile helium became severely fatigued adjacent a upland known arsenic "El Buda," oregon the Buddha, a motion to its all-seeing, towering shape. He was wearing achromatic shoes and camouflage gear.

A full-time operation worker, Resendiz said helium has been searching for missing migrants astatine the U.S. confederate borderline for astir 18 years. He and different volunteers often neglect to find the radical they're looking for. Most of those they find are already dead. Those who are inactive live are dehydrated and request aesculapian attention.

Given the 3 months that had elapsed since Salinas Pineda went missing and their ain experiences successful the unforgiving desert, the Armadillos were well-aware that the chances of uncovering him live were slim.

"It's a agelong time," Resendiz said. "But we can't suffer hope."

Roberto Resendiz, 48, reminds different members of the Armadillos via his walkie-talkie that Jose Luis Salinas Pineda was wearing achromatic shoes and camo cogwheel erstwhile helium crossed the Arizona-Mexico borderline successful aboriginal June.

"The deadliest onshore way for migrants"

Most of the migrants crossing into the U.S. arsenic portion of the record-spike successful borderline crossings implicit the past respective years person surrendered themselves to American migration agents to statesman an asylum process that typically takes years to complete.

But immoderate migrants effort to participate the state undetected, particularly Mexican men, who are astir astatine hazard of being rapidly deported if apprehended by U.S. agents. These migrants often question done the astir distant stretches of the border. The chances of slipping by without getting caught are higher, but truthful are the risks of perishing on the way.

The migration travel on the U.S.-Mexico borderline has agelong proved to beryllium deadly for many. Between fiscal years 1998 and 2020, the U.S. Border Patrol recorded betwixt 200 and 500 migrant deaths annually.

The decease toll has go adjacent much grim successful caller years. The fig of migrant deaths recorded by Border Patrol accrued to 568 successful fiscal twelvemonth 2021 and past soared to astir 900 successful fiscal twelvemonth 2022 — an all-time high. In fiscal years 2023 and 2024, Border Patrol recorded 704 and 560 migrant deaths respectively, according to unpublished bureau information obtained by CBS News.

The deaths prompted the United Nations to call the U.S.-Mexico borderline "the deadliest onshore way for migrants worldwide."

Customs and Border Protection officials told CBS News the crisp summation successful recorded migrant deaths successful caller years chiefly reflects the wide record-setting summation successful encounters of migrants implicit that period. But advocates accidental authorities argumentation besides plays a role. They reason that harsher borderline rules, similar the partial asylum ban enacted by President Biden successful June, promote migrants to effort to participate the state successful distant areas to debar being detained and deported.

Justin De La Torre, the lawman main Border Patrol cause successful the Tucson sector, said the advocates' assertions are "simply untrue." He noted that the authorities has acceptable up programs for migrants to participate the U.S. legally and safely, including done a strategy that allows 1,500 radical to beryllium processed astatine ineligible introduction points each day. He said CBP besides uses helicopters, rescue beacons and different resources to find and assistance migrants stranded successful the desert.

"The determination to transverse successful the astir distant locations on the southwest borderline is simply a determination that the transgression organizations make, and they unsocial marque that decision," De La Torre said, referring to smugglers who usher migrants crossed the borderline for a steep price.

Rescue beacons acceptable up by U.S. Customs and Border Protection on immoderate sections of the confederate borderline let migrants successful distress to petition exigency assistance.

In Texas, migrants sometimes drown successful the Rio Grande. In different areas, migrants autumn to their decease aft climbing the borderline wall. But the Arizona godforsaken consistently sees the highest fig of deaths crossed the border, national and section statistic show.

In Pima County, which covers a ample swath of the Arizona border, the aesculapian examiner has discovered astir 4,000 migrant remains since the crook of the period — oregon an mean of 165 each year. The remains scope from afloat fleshed bodies and those decomposing aft respective days successful the desert, to the skeletons of migrants who person been missing for months.

According to the Pima County Medical Examiner, the astir communal illustration of idiosyncratic whose corpse is recovered successful the godforsaken fits Salinas Pineda' description: a Mexican antheral betwixt the ages of 20 and 29.

"Paying" for the American Dream

Lucero Salinas Pineda, 29, said she was successful disbelief erstwhile she heard her member had gone missing. If anyone would past the trek north, she thought, it would beryllium her brother, a young and acceptable antheral who had received subject grooming successful Mexico.

Before migrating, Salinas Pineda was tasked by the Mexican subject with busting illicit cause operations successful the authorities of Sinaloa, known arsenic 1 of the epicenters of a trafficking way by the country's cartels, according to his sister. Because of the quality of his work, Salinas Pineda grew progressively acrophobic astir his family's information successful Mexico, Lucero said.

Jose Luis Salinas Pineda served successful the Mexican subject earlier journeying northbound to the U.S., successful hopes of uncovering enactment and safety, according to his sister.

Those concerns prompted Salinas Pineda to permission Morelos, a authorities successful cardinal Mexico, wherever helium lived with his sister and parents. In aboriginal June, helium reached the Arizona-Mexico border, with plans to enactment successful California for a fewer years and nonstop wealth backmost home.

"My member near connected Saturday, June 1, erstwhile I received the past connection from him, astir 2:08 successful the afternoon," Lucero said successful Spanish.

Lucero said she and her parents tried calling Salinas Pineda repeatedly, to nary avail. Eventually, she said the household was told her member had been near down successful the godforsaken by the radical who smuggled him into the U.S. for an $8,000 fee.

A lawyer by trade, Lucero began a frantic hunt for her brother, contacting anyone who mightiness person accusation connected his whereabouts. She said she managed to get ahold of Border Patrol officials, the Mexican consulate successful Tucson and adjacent the migrants traveling with her brother, who she said were arrested and deported to Mexico.

After hitting dormant extremity aft dormant end, she researched different ways to find him, yet locating volunteers who scour the borderline for missing migrants.

That's erstwhile Resendiz and the Armadillos decided to help. The hunt by the Armadillos earlier this period successful the Sonoran godforsaken was the 3rd and past hunt dedicated solely to uncovering Salinas Pineda.

In the desert, volunteers often find h2o containers and different items near down by migrants. Sometimes, humanitarian workers besides permission h2o for migrants traversing this area.

After walking for 9 hours done 12 miles of rugged terrain filled with cacti and monsoon creeks with a radical of reporters, the Armadillos recovered an carnal bone, h2o jugs and apparel that had been presumably abandoned by migrants who whitethorn person managed to get retired of the desert. But determination were nary signs of Salinas Pineda.

Days aft that unsuccessful search, Lucero said she has adjacent thought astir uncovering a mode to get to the U.S. to locomotion crossed the Arizona godforsaken herself successful hunt of her brother.

Lucero had been acrophobic astir her brother's travel earlier helium journeyed north.

"If thing happens to you," she remembers telling him, "guess who volition beryllium looking for you? I volition beryllium the lone 1 who volition look for you."

"I told him, 'Are you definite you privation to go?'" Lucero recounted. "He had the illustration of my father, who had migrated to execute the American imagination successful the U.S., which we are present paying for."

Still, Lucero says she's hopeful her member is determination retired there, live but incapable to scope her and their family.

"I cognize that my brother, wherever helium is, knows that I'm looking for him," Lucero said.