Bodies Found in Mexico in Search for 10 Missing Canadian Mine Workers

Mexican authorities have discovered bodies and human remains in the northwestern state of Sinaloa during the ongoing search for 10 workers who were abducted from a Canadian-linked mining site, officials said Friday. The remains were located near the community of El Verde in the Concordia municipality, where the workers vanished in late January, according to a statement from the Mexican Attorney General’s Office.

The announcement did not specify exactly how many bodies or sets of remains were found, but authorities said one of the recovered bodies had characteristics similar to one of the missing individuals, and efforts are underway to confirm the identity through forensic analysis.

The 10 missing workers were abducted on Jan. 23 from a mining project in the region operated by Vancouver-based Vizsla Silver, local media and company statements reported previously, and the disappearance prompted a major search effort by Mexican security forces in coordination with the company’s crisis response team.

In the same area where the bodies were found, the Mexican Navy reported dismantling 10 camps that were being used by members of organized criminal groups, and officials confirmed the arrests of four people believed to be linked to the workers’ disappearances.

Sinaloa has long been affected by violence involving rival factions of the Sinaloa cartel, and the mountainous terrain around Concordia has seen increased law-enforcement operations aimed at disrupting organized crime and locating the missing men. The remains discovery marks a grim development in a case that has drawn international attention and intensified pressure on authorities to determine the fate of the kidnapped workers.

As the forensic process continues and families await confirmation on identities, the government’s expanded security efforts in the region remain in place, including heightened troop deployments and collaboration between federal, state and municipal law-enforcement agencies.