HomeNewsBriefReport: 50,000 Abducted Children in Mexico
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Report: 50,000 Abducted Children in Mexico

HUMAN TRAFFICKING / 10 DEC 2010 BY INSIGHT CRIME EN

A Mexican NGO estimates that there are around 50,000 child abductees in Mexico today. According to Guillermo Gutiérrez Romero, the president of Mexico’s Association of Missing and Stolen Children, the majority of them are sexually exploited.

An article in Sinaloa’s El Noroeste reports that Gutiérrez’s organization has released new data illustrating the dark reality of child trafficking in the country.  "We do not have the exact number of total cases,” said Gutiérrez, “and we do not use the national registry to know how many children are stolen in Mexico. Quite frequently the states omit certain information as it suits their interests." Still, according to estimates based on the numbers of cases his organization receives, Gutiérrez said Mexico is considered the “Bangkok of Latin America,” attracting pedophiles from all around the world.

According to Gutiérrez, this practice is most common in the country’s most popular tourist destinations, including port cities like Veracruz and Cancún. 

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