The Mexican government recently claimed that some funding for the “illicit support of migrant caravans” came from individuals within the United States.
In a June 6 press release, Mexico’s Finance and Tax Secretariat announced that it has “blocked the bank accounts of various individuals and corporations that allegedly participated in the trafficking of migrants and the illegal organization of migrant caravans.”
As Breitbart first reported, the Mexican government identified 26 individuals who made “several questionable financial transactions from the cities of Chiapas and Queretaro during the times that the migrant caravans were moving through those places.”
The press release states that “illegal payment for migrant smuggling” came from individuals in El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Cameroon, the United States, and England.
Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit froze the accounts of 26 unnamed people for their “probable link with migrant smuggling and illicit support of migrant caravans.” The press release states that complaints have been presented to Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office for prosecution.
Breitbart points out that the action came at “a time when Mexican officials are meeting with their U.S. counterparts in an attempt to keep the Trump administration from levying tariffs on international commerce as a punitive measure over the country’s lax approach to migration.”
Mexican authorities also announced that they had arrested two men suspected of organizing migrant caravans, claiming the men demanded money from migrants in exchange for getting them to the United States, Breitbart reports.
Diplomatic sources who spoke with Breitbart declined to reveal the identities of the 26 individuals behind the accounts, but confirmed that the probe is being led by Financial Intelligence Unit Director Santiago Nieto Castillo. They also said that the investigation was prioritized last week in response to trade negotiations with the United States.
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Anthony Gockowski is managing editor of Battleground State News, The Ohio Star, and The Minnesota Sun. Follow Anthony on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
