In late May, Carolina, a migrant from Venezuela, was taken from a stash house in Reynosa, a Mexican border city, by her captors. She initially believed they intended to coerce her into calling her family for a $2,000 ransom. However, to her horror, she was forced onto a dilapidated bus parked nearby, where she was sexually assaulted by one of the men, as recounted to Reuters. Carolina’s traumatic experience is confirmed by a migrant advocate who provided assistance after the incident, though they requested anonymity for security reasons.

This alarming incident is part of a broader pattern of increased sexual violence against migrants in key border cities like Reynosa and Matamoros, which serve as major transit points for those seeking entry into the United States. This disturbing trend is substantiated by data from the Mexican government, humanitarian organizations, and the testimonies of eight sexual assault survivors, as well as over a dozen local aid workers.