Mayor says 6 found dead in Texas boxcar died of heatstroke

The six people whose remains were discovered May 10 in a boxcar in Laredo, Texas, all died of heatstroke, Laredo Mayor Victor Treviño said Thursday. Medical examinations indicated they died hours before the train car entered Laredo, he said. Temperatures in the area hit 97 degrees Fahrenheit the day they were discovered. The group included four men, one woman, and a 14-year-old boy. Officials did not share their names.

Where were the victims from? Police said Thursday that three of the people were from Mexico and three from Honduras. They likely entered the boxcar in Del Rio, Texas, on the night of May 9 with assistance from human smugglers, according to Laredo Police Chief Miguel Rodriguez. Federal investigators were leading a probe into what happened, and Rodriguez believed they had a good chance of catching those responsible, he said.

Rodriguez also said a seventh person on Monday was found dead near railroad tracks in San Antonio, Texas. The train carrying the boxcar passed through San Antonio on its way to Laredo, but investigators didn’t yet know if the incidents were connected, he said.

Dig deeper: Read my initial report on the incident for more details.