Cartels Use Cab Hauling for Migrant Smuggling as Violence Surges in Sonora

Mexico’s role as a transit country for migrants surged in 2023, primarily fueled by the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. The year saw a staggering 132% increase in irregular entries. This rise in migration has been a goldmine for human trafficking networks, which have ramped up their operations and adopted new tactics to transport migrants across the border.

One of the latest strategies? The use of ride-hailing taxis to ferry migrants through Sonora. Francisco Sergio Méndez, the Attorney General’s Office (FGR) delegate in Sonora, explained that criminal groups have increasingly turned to these services to move people undetected. He called on ride-hailing platforms to step up their security measures, urging companies to better identify passengers, especially when they aren’t Mexican nationals or are challenging to recognize immediately.

Even with this new tactic in play, 2024 has seen a sharp decline in migrant encounters within Sonora, dropping by 85%, according to Méndez. However, the trafficking networks remain active.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported over 2.5 million migrant encounters at the U.S. southwest border in 2023. By contrast, Mexican migration authorities documented only 782,176 encounters, reflecting less than half the total at the U.S. border, though still a 77% increase over 2022.

Migrants primarily entering Mexico through Chiapas, often fleeing from Central and South America, face a harrowing journey through cartel-dominated territories. Areas like Veracruz, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas, Sonora, and Tijuana are notorious hotspots where migrants are particularly vulnerable to violence and exploitation by criminal groups.

One recent tragedy underscores the danger migrants face in these territories. A van transporting migrants was ambushed on the Tubutama-Nogales highway this past Sunday. The attack left one child dead and eight others injured, including five men and three women. Sonora Governor Alfonso Durazo commented that the attack may not have specifically targeted migrants, speculating that cartels guarding the region could have mistaken the vehicle for a rival operation. The area is a known battleground for factions like Los Chapitos, who control human trafficking routes and are engaged in turf wars with rival groups such as Los Rusos and Los Salazar.

However, despite Durazo’s remarks, there’s growing concern that attacks on ride-hailing drivers involved in migrant transportation could become more frequent. In Chihuahua, ride-hailing drivers were recently killed for allegedly shuttling migrants from the state capital to Ciudad Juárez. Authorities believe this could have been a violent message from a criminal group warning against using this method for trafficking.