Horror as nine missing students found dismembered on motorway alongside bag of hands

The bodies of nine students who disappeared in southern Mexico in February have been found dismembered and dumped on a motorway alongside a bag of severed hands in what is believed to be another brutal cartel killing. The remains were discovered inside a deserted car in San Jose Miahuatlan, on the border of the Mexican states of Puebla and Oaxaca, 175 miles from Mexico City.

Five of the nine bodies were found underneath a blood-soaked tarpaulin, while the other four were found contorted inside the boot of the car, squashed alongside a bag containing the hands of each person. Initially, local media suggested that the victims were students from Tlaxcala, aged between 19 and 30, who had travelled to Oaxaca for a beach holiday. However, a new report published by Mexican outlet NVINoticias claimed the students were members of the 'Los Zacapoaxtlas' criminal organisation.

On March 2, three days after the students were reported missing, a dark grey VW Vento with Tlaxcala license plates was discovered along the busy Cuacnopalan-Oaxaca highway, according to Periodico Central. The bodies were then found inside.

Mexican media outlets have identified eight of the nine victims so far: Angie Lizeth, 29, Brenda Mariel, 19, Jacqueline Ailet, 23, Noemi Yamileth, 28, Lesly Noya Trejo, 21, Raul Emmanuel, 28, Ruben Antonio, and Rolando Armando. The ninth has not yet been identified.

As of Tuesday (March 4), no suspects have been named, though cartel involvement has been suggested. The Attorney General's Office in Puebla is collaborating with its other local law enforcement agencies in Tlaxcala and Oaxaca to find the killers.

While the Puebla State Attorney General’s Office is unable to divulge much information at this time, authorities have revealed they have surveillance footage from February 24 showing the vehicle driving along the Atlixcayotl highway near the town of Atlixco, about 90 miles west of where the students' remains were found, according to Periodico Central.

"So far I cannot offer information. There are lines of investigation, but I cannot reveal them due to confidentiality," said Idamis Pastor Betancourt, head of Puebla's State Attorney General's Office, at a press conference on Monday.

"When we have a response and the investigation is complete, we will be in a position to provide more information," he added.

While Mexico is ravaged by cartel violence, the Oaxaca province is generally regarded as one of the safest places in the country and has become a popular tourist destination thanks to its picturesque sandy beaches.

In 2023, Mexico registered over 30,000 murders for the sixth year running, marking the most violent period in the country’s recent history, reported Semafor last year. Mexican drug trafficking rings play a major role in the flow of cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin and marijuana, among others, between Latin America and the United States.

Drug cartels and gangs have also branched out to conduct other illegal activities for profit, including sex trafficking. The country's great economic divide has spurred criminal activity mainly among the poorer communities, which includes the majority of Mexico’s population.