Authorities in Mexico have confirmed the remains found in 45 plastic bags near Guadalajara belong to as many as eight call center employees, who were reported missing in May, according to CBS.
Six men and two women were reported missing by their families between May 20 and May 22. While their families believed their loved ones worked at a typical call center, the facility was reportedly one of 19 in Mexico under investigation by the United States Department of the Treasury for possible links to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).
As many as eight young workers were confirmed dead in Mexico after they apparently tried to quit jobs at a call center operated by a violent drug cartel that targeted Americans in a real estate scam. https://t.co/PYhcb8EYtx
— NBC News (@NBCNews) June 7, 2023
“CJNG’s deep involvement in timeshare fraud in the Puerto Vallarta area and elsewhere, which often targets elder U.S. citizens and can defraud victims of their life savings, is an important revenue stream supporting the group’s overall criminal enterprise,” the Treasury Department announced in a statement April 27.
Though no motive for the killings has been officially released, a U.S. official speaking to CBS on condition of anonymity stated that it appeared the workers were killed by the cartel because they had tried to quit their jobs. “Best guess is these kids had decided they wanted out of the business,” the U.S. official said, suggesting CJNG was “sending a message to other defectors.”(RELATED: Cartel Apologizes For Kidnapping And Killing Americans, Turns Over Its Own Members For ‘Lack Of Discipline’: REPORT)
A tip led authorities in Mexico to the Mirador del Bosque ravine near Guadalajara where law enforcement officials found multiple human remains stashed away in 45 plastic bags. A forensic examination of the remains confirmed the bodies were those of the missing call center employees, CBS reported.
The Department of Justice considers the CJNG to be “one of the largest, most dangerous drug cartels currently operating in Mexico.”