Edet Ikotidem
Eight suspects have reportedly been named by Mexican prosecutors as being suspected of being behind the fire that claimed 38 lives at a migrant detention centre
Monday’s blaze is now being investigated as a possible homicide.
At the facility in Ciudad Juarez, a city close to the US border, five of the suspects reportedly work as security guards.
Authorities face mounting pressure to explain why the victims, who came from Central and Southern America, were not freed when the fire broke out.
Video footage from the scene showed uniformed officials appearing to walk away as the blaze erupted in a corner, leaving a group of men behind in what appeared to be a locked cell.
People who committed the crimes, according to Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, would face punishment “in accordance with the law.”.
He emphasized that the investigation would be transparent and that those accountable for the “painful tragedy” would not enjoy “impunity.”.
Shortly after the fire, Mr. López Obrador said the migrants had set mattresses alight “when they learned that they’d be deported”.
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But there are rumors that migrants were arbitrarily detained during a roundup, held in subpar conditions, and denied enough water while being held.
Why did the guards fail to release the prisoners once the fire started is the most pressing question being asked in Mexico, particularly by other migrants in Ciudad Juarez and human rights organizations.
AÂ 30-second video, reportedly from security cameras inside the facility, appears to show at least one man attempting to open the door while several guards move around outside before leaving as the flames engulf the room.
The footage has been widely shared on Twitter and published by a number of Mexican newspapers, with many people expressing shock at what they say was a failure by the guards to act.
Asked about that footage, Mr. López Obrador – who has a very fractious relationship with the media – accused journalists of being more interested in sensationalism than the pain of the trapped migrants.
68 men were reportedly inside the facility when the fire broke out, according to Mexican officials.
Names of those injured and dead have been made public by authorities but have not yet been clarified which of them have survived. Twenty-eight of them are.
The incidents occur when at a time when Mexico is struggling with an influx of migrants, most of whom are reaching the US from Guatemala, with others from Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, and Venezuela.
