Mexico Migrant Detention Fire: Migrant Who Started Fire That Killed 40 People Charged

The case of the Mexico Migrant Center fire that killed nearly 40 people in Ciudad Juarez is finally moving forward as Mexico charges a second migrant who may have caused it as a result of a protest.

According to the Associated Press, the second migrant charged is a Venezuelan whom Mexican authorities identified as Carlos "C." The Mexico Prosecutor's Office has now also charged him with homicide, injuries, and damages caused by the fire he and another migrant caused.

The Mexico migrant center fire caused at least 40 deaths, all of whom were migrants. Dozens more were wounded in what was considered the deadliest incident to have ever happened at a Mexican immigration facility. It has since sparked a wave of criticisms against President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and the US government for the inhumane treatment that these migrants were getting, as well as the squalid conditions of these migrant detention centers.

Pressure from the United States led the Mexican government to send these migrants off to facilities such as the one that burned down in Ciudad Juarez, which is just across the border from El Paso, Texas.

Mexico Issued More Arrest Warrants to Individuals Relating to Deadly Migrant Center Fire

According to CNN, many of the migrants at the burned-out facility were not just from Venezuela, as some hailed from Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, Since the fire, the Mexican foreign ministry has been in contact with the governments of these countries in order to identify and repatriate them.

So far, Mexican authorities have identified eight people who could be responsible, including two federal agents, one state migration agent, and several employees from a private security company tasked with looking out for the migrants.

Video evidence showed that none of the public officials at the prison, nor the private guards, made any effort to open a locked door holding detained migrants, leading to those 40 deaths. However, it was soon found that none of the guards had any keys in the first place and could not open the cell doors.

The fire itself was started to protest the conditions within the facility, where migrants were packed inside cramped cells in squalid conditions. They reportedly gathered mattresses before setting them on fire. However, the fire spread and led to the deaths of some of the people inside the facility.

New Migrant Center Opens at Ciudad Juarez Several Months After Deadly Fire

Last month, for the first time since the fire happened, a new migrant detention center opened in Ciudad Juarez. It is located near the e Zaragoza international bridge that connects Mexico to El Paso, Texas.

According to El Paso Matters, the new site will be used as a temporary detention site. It has a capacity for 80 people, with National Institute of Migration Minister Francisco Garduño Yáñez stating that migrants detained there will only be staying for "no more than 36 hours while their immigration situation is reviewed."

The facility will indeed be the one designated to replace the building that burned down a few months prior.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Video shows detainees locked behind gates as fire breaks out in detention center - CNN