Dozen state police charged in the massacre of 19 in Mexico

Ricardo Garcia and daughter Angela sit next to an altar adorned with photographs of his older...
Ricardo Garcia and daughter Angela sit next to an altar adorned with photographs of his older daughter Santa Garcia, in his home in Comitancillo, Guatemala, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2021. He believes his daughter Santa is one of the charred corpses found in a northern Mexico border state on Saturday. The country's Foreign Ministry said it was collecting DNA samples from a dozen relatives to see if there was a match with any of the bodies. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)(Oliver de Ros | AP)
Published: Feb. 4, 2021 at 9:27 AM CST

CIUDAD VICTORIA, Mexico (AP) — Prosecutors in the northern Mexico border state of Tamaulipas say they have arrested a dozen state police officers for allegedly killing 19 people, including Guatemalan migrants, whose bodies were found shot and burned near the U.S. border late in January.

Tamaulipas state Attorney General Irving Barrios Mojica said late Tuesday that all 12 state policemen are in custody and face charges of homicide, abuse of authority and making false statements.

The killings revived memories of the gruesome 2010 massacre of 72 migrants near the town of San Fernando in the same gang-ridden state.

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