Texas officials identify all but 6 of 53 migrant truck victims
SAN ANTONIO (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — All but six of the 53 migrants found dead or dying in a tractor-trailer in Texas last week have been identified, officials said Wednesday.
The Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office said 22 of the dead were from Mexico, 19 were from Guatemala and six were from Honduras.
The migrants were found in an abandoned trailer June 27 on a back road on the edge of San Antonio. The alleged driver of the truck was due in federal court Wednesday for a detention hearing.
The victims include a 13-year-old and 14-year-old from Guatemala and two 16-year-olds from Mexico, the medical examiner's office said.
One survivor of the journey, 20-year-old Yenifer Yulisa Cardona Tomás from Guatemala, told The Associated Press that smugglers had covered the trailer's floor with what she believes was powdered chicken bouillon, apparently to throw off any dogs at checkpoint.
Speaking by phone from her hospital bed Monday, she said it was already hot that day when she climbed into the back of the trailer.
Cardona Tomás credits her survival to her friend's caution to stay near the door where it would be cooler. She shared that same advice with another friend she had made during the journey. That friend also survived.
The truck was carrying 73 people in all when it was found. Federal prosecutors say four people have been arrested in connection with the discovery of the truck, including the driver.
