A grim discovery of over 1,000 bone fragments near a Mexico City lake spotlights the nation’s forensic crisis weeks before it co-hosts the FIFA World Cup.
MORE than 1,000 bone fragments have been discovered near a lake in Mexico City, authorities and a volunteer group have confirmed.
The gruesome find comes just weeks before the city is set to co-host matches for the FIFA World Cup.
A collective of families searching for missing loved ones described the findings near Lake Chalco as evidence of a “devastating reality” and “a forensic crisis of incalculable dimensions.”
The group stated that while “the authorities want this to go unnoticed, the families want the whole world to know the tragedy that occurs in the country’s capital.”
City authorities began exhuming the lakefront site in eastern Mexico City last week.
Prosecutors announced that approximately 300 bone fragments, potentially belonging to three individuals, had been recovered.
However, the volunteer group insists they found more than 1,000 fragments in and around the site.
They claim some fragments were located in areas already examined by government agents.
Mexico’s drug war has resulted in more than 480,000 deaths since 2006.
A further 130,000 people have been reported missing in the conflict.
A UN committee of experts has labelled the missing persons crisis a “crime against humanity.”
The committee stated recovery efforts have been hampered by “acquiescence and omission on the part of public servants.”
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum criticised the report for ignoring new policies to support families of the missing.
Activists met with city officials demanding uninterrupted searches until the site is fully inspected.
Both Mexico City and Guadalajara are preparing to host World Cup games in June.
Protesters in both cities have denounced the government’s failure to properly investigate disappearances.
The United States and Canada are co-hosting the 2026 tournament with Mexico.
