Mexican federal judge charges 2nd migrant in Juárez detention center fire that killed 40

Associated Press
·2 min read
19

MEXICO CITY — A federal judge in Mexico has charged another Venezuelan migrant over his alleged role in the March blaze at a Mexican detention center that left 40 dead and dozens more wounded.

The Mexican prosecutor's office said Thursday in a statement that a man identified as Carlos "C" was charged with homicide, injuries and damages caused by the fire in a migrant detention facility in Juárez, across the border from El Paso.

Authorities identified him, along with another migrant from Venezuela, as one of the people who allegedly started the fire, which was the deadliest ever at a Mexican immigration facility.

A makeshift altar in honor of migrants who died in a dormitory fire at an immigration detention center that killed more than three dozen people in Juárez is shown April 20. Mexico prosecutor's office said in a statement Thursday that a federal judge has charged another Venezuelan migrant over his alleged role in the March blaze at the detention center.

For subscribers: 'They couldn't find the keys': How 40 migrants died in Juárez fire

The tragic blaze and its aftermath captured global attention earlier this year as loved ones across the hemisphere mourned and demanded justice for the victims.

It also sparked controversy and intense criticism about the treatment of migrants by both Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and American authorities, which have constantly pressured the Mexican government to ward off rising arrivals of people from across Latin America and the Caribbean.

More: Mexico's top immigration official to face charges in Juárez fire that killed 40 migrants

On March 27, a small number of the migrants being held in the detention facility started a fire in their cell, apparently to protest conditions. Their highly flammable mattresses quickly filled the area with smoke, and guards fled without unlocking their cell, security camera videos show.

In response, authorities have opened criminal proceedings against Francisco Garduño, head of Mexico's National Migration Institute, and another director for unlawful exercise of public service and failure to perform their duties, which resulted in death by asphyxiation of many migrants.

Authorities also detained six other immigration officers, a private security guard and the other migrant, charging them with homicide and for other injuries caused by the fire. Following the fire, NMI closed small- and medium-sized detention facilities similar to the one in Juárez, and it began a review of conditions in larger facilities.

More: Head of Mexico immigration agency free, on job as he awaits trial in deadly Juárez fire

More: Mexico shuts some migrant detention centers after Juárez fire, announces new 'shelter'

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Mexican judge charges migrant in deadly Juárez detention center fire