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In an incident in the Cancun Hotel Zone that did not involve tourists but benefited everyone, 11 drug dealers were taken off the streets, along with drugs that were likely intended for sale. The arrests were made while various authorities were looking into a crime involving missing construction workers. The missing workers were part of the crew building a new hotel in the area, and they have not been found yet.
The capture and arrest of the 11 people took place at the Eden Rock Hotel property, which is currently under construction in the Hotel Zone. Upon taking the individuals into custody, the alleged criminals told authorities that they knew nothing about the missing construction workers and claimed that they had never even met them. The search for the four workers, which was launched by the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office in Investigation of Forced Disappearances Crimes, continues.
The first search for the missing group was initiated by a group of relatives of the missing men, who had been missing since September 14th. The group consists of four men, which include a 21-year-old, a 27-year-old, a 28-year-old, and a 36-year-old. Family members previously launched their own search because they claimed authorities were not making the missing men a priority.
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It was not until October 12 that the official search was announced by the State Prosecutor’s Office. It involved a number of different authorities, including the Secretariat of Public Security, the Mexican Navy, the National Guard, and the National Anti-kidnapping Coordination. Along with the 10 men and one woman that were taken into custody as a result of the search, a vehicle and an undisclosed amount of drugs were recovered as well.
Prior to the operation that led to the capture of the 11 individuals arrested for the drugs, a first search was carried out in the municipality of Benito Juárez. That search led to the arrest of two individuals that were charged with being involved in “crimes against health.” There is no other information on those arrests other than that a van being used by the pair was taken into custody as well.
The perpetrator or perpetrators involved in the disappearance of the four missing men are still unknown. No relevant information was reported to have come from the 13 total alleged criminals that were arrested during either of the operations carried out by authorities. There was also no evidence of the four men or any crime committed against them at the scene of the arrests.
This is not the first time a situation like this has occurred, and in fact, a number of individuals looking for work in the Cancun Hotel Zone disappeared in 2020. The incident involved the disappearance of 20 people who allegedly went to the Hotel Planet Hollywood in Cancun in search of an opportunity to work. At that time, the Planet Hollywood resort was being built, so the two separate situations are very similar in nature, but preliminary investigations into the 2020 case pointed to possible organized crime involvement.
For now, the search for the four missing men will continue, and while it is unfortunate that the men were not found, the search did lead to alleged drug dealers being taken off of the streets of Cancun. Hopefully, for the sake of the men and their families, something can come to light that will lead authorities to their location. And with any luck, those perpetrators can be brought to justice as well.
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