A total of nine victims—comprising intact bodies alongside skeletal remains, most in an advanced state of decomposition—were reported found on September 5 and 10 by missing persons search groups in the municipality of Tecate, along a trail connecting the United States to Rancho La Uva.
Four victims were found on Saturday, September 5; the second discovery took place on Thursday, September 10, when five additional bodies were recovered.
The location and recovery of the human remains—”scattered among the brush, exposed to the sun, some still wearing their travel backpacks”—resulted from the efforts of several search collectives: *Madres Hasta Encontrarte* and *Unión y Fuerza por Nuestros Desaparecidos* (both based in Tecate), along with the *Colectivo de Búsqueda de Baja California*, *Buscando a Tolano*, and *Armadillos Tijuana*, all of whom joined forces for a massive search operation.
There was no investigation by the prosecutor’s office nor any police intelligence work, as the informants did not trust the authorities and chose instead to contact the *Madres Hasta Encontrarte* collective anonymously.
They were informed that there were “scattered bodies” on the way to the border; the informants sent coordinates to locate the site and photos of the bodies as evidence to prompt the search. Based on this information, Mónica Madrigal, the collective’s president and founder, requested support from the other groups of searching family members.
Despite the information received, the first day of the operation was grueling; it dragged on for more than five hours under the sun in a rugged, mountainous area characterized by extreme temperatures and steep, difficult terrain.
Upon arriving at the site, the scene was macabre; There were two types of victims: some bodies were still clothed, indicating more recent deaths, while in other cases, the bones had already been gnawed by scavengers.
The day of September 10th was even more grueling, as the group had to cover greater distances in temperatures reaching 40 degrees Celsius. The searchers faced the same harsh conditions as the migrants; consequently, members of the search collectives and the accompanying National Guard agents suffered from heatstroke—becoming dehydrated, dizzy, and disoriented—and were forced to abandon the search.
They were assisted by their fellow searchers and later treated by firefighters and paramedics who had remained kilometers away from the group due to the area’s difficult terrain.
The hardiest among them pressed on until they located five bodies and reported the discovery; the National Guard relayed the news over the police radio frequency.
Although the State Attorney General’s Office received the report, they decided not to go to the scene. Instead, they instructed the searchers and National Guard personnel to transport the remains to the main access point for registration and transfer to the forensic medical service (Semefo), refusing to venture into the area themselves as was their duty.
Lacking professional equipment or training for evidence preservation—but driven by a desire to help and years of experience as searchers—these relatives of the missing began the task of moving the bodies.
One by one, the corpses and decomposing human remains were placed onto blankets for transport; men and women carried them across the rugged terrain for over three hours until they reached the location where the authorities were stationed. Members of the search collectives reported that the bodies and skeletal remains were transported to the forensic medical service (Semefo) in Tijuana, where experts will attempt to gather information to facilitate identification, thereby enabling the location of the victims’ families and their return home.
GRAVES AND SITES OF DEATH
Over the past year, the municipality of Tecate has seen an alarming rise in the discovery of clandestine graves and illegal burial sites. Operations coordinated by search collectives and government agencies indicate that organized crime groups are exploiting hard-to-reach areas and the proximity to the international border wall to systematically bury their victims.
Chronologically and geographically, the most significant discoveries reported between late 2025 and September 2026 include:
* September 5 and 10: Nine bodies at Rancho la Uva.
* June 2026: A grave in the Del Bosque residential area. An anonymous tip led searchers to two clandestine graves where the bodies of three adolescents (aged 15 and 16) were recovered. Forensic analysis confirmed they were three youths who had gone missing in April. Their identities were confirmed by family members.
