Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua — Authorities have a long investigative road ahead after the discovery of more than 380 bodies. The bodies were located hidden in a crematorium in the city of Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua.
The city of Ciudad Juárez is located on the Rio Grande just south of El Paso, Texas. On Monday, Chihuahua State Prosecutor César Jáuregui Moreno said a total of 383 bodies had been found and that six funeral homes are being investigated.
The six funeral homes, he listed, are Luz Divina, Capillas Protecto Deco, Del Carmen, Ramírez, Latinoamericana and Amor Eterno.
Jáuregui Moreno provided details about the property which he described as a small house with five or six rooms.
“It’s an atrocious case, unprecedented (…) the bodies were piled up there due to criminal negligence (…) the handling violates all rules for the disposal of corpses,” he said adding that there were no refrigeration chambers or minimum protection conditions.
According to information from the Public Prosecutor’s Office, many of the bodies had been stored there since 2020.
Eloy García, the Director of Communications and Public Social Relations of the FGE, said crematorium operators José Luis Arellano Cuarón and Facundo Martínez Robleo are being held in connection with the discovery of the bodies. Both men are believed to be the operators of the crematorium that was subcontracted by funeral homes.
“They will be charged with the crimes established in the Penal Code regarding the improper burial of corpses, as well as with certain crimes established in the General Health Law, which relate to the proper use of bodies and cadavers available to establishments dedicated to this,” Jáuregui explained.
The bodies were found on Thursday by municipal police who were responding to resident reports of foul odors. A total of 383 embalmed bodies were found stacked, hidden and decomposing at the site.
