Mexican authorities want to talk to a Canadian mining company about the kidnapped workers
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I attorney general of the Mexican state of Sinaloa says he wants to talk to officials of a Canadian mining firm whose workers were kidnapped by a group suspected to be the Sinaloa group.
Sinaloa Attorney General Claudia Zulema Sánchez Kondo told reporters on Tuesday that his office has not been in official contact with Vizsla Silver in Vancouver since at least ten of its employees were kidnapped in a house rented by the company on January 23 in the city of The Concordia.
“The company has never approached us. We are in the process of asking to speak with the director of the company … so we can establish everything,” said Sánchez Kondo, according to a video recording of his statements provided by his office to CBC News.
Sánchez Kondo said the only contact with the company so far has come through a Vizsla Silver representative, who notified Sinaloan authorities of the kidnapping via a 911 call on Jan. 23.
The Sinaloan authorities also want information from the company on the organization chart as well roles of captive workerssaid Sánchez Kondo.
Vizsla Silver has not provided missing persons reports to its employees and authorities have received only five missing persons reports, filed by families, so far, the attorney general said.
The company did not return repeated requests for comment sent by CBC News by email and phone.
Operations are scheduled for April 2025
Vizsla Silver has previously faced safety concerns with its Panuco silver and gold exploration project in Sinaloa. It suspended field work on April 4, 2025, due to “security conditions in the area,” according to the company’s filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
“Certain areas of Mexico, including the state of Sinaloa … have experienced outbreaks of local violence, threats, theft, kidnapping and extortion related to drug cartels and other criminal organizations,” the SEC report said.
The kidnapping of workers has become one of the security priorities of the national and provincial authorities in Sinaloa. The state is currently facing a bloody and protracted civil war within the Sinaloa cartel, one of the most powerful drug-trafficking groups in the world, which erupted in September 2024.
Mexico’s secretary of state security and citizen protection Omar Harfuch traveled on Wednesday to the northwestern region of Mexico, which borders the Pacific coast, to meet with government and military officials.
Earlier, Harfuch said the authorities suspected a certain group of Sinaloa, known as Los Chapitos, he was involved in kidnapping.
Two legislatures at the state level and Citizens’ Movement The group was recently shot while traveling in a car during an attack related to Los Chapitos. One of the law enforcement officers, Sergio Torres, is reportedly in the hospital– a coma.
Federal authorities recently announced that they have arrested one man in connection with the attack.
The group of Los Chapitos remains loyal to the sons of Joaquín who is now in prison (El Chapo) Guzman. They fought with a group loyal to the son of Ismael (El Mayo) Zambada García, who once led the Sinaloa cartel with El Chapo.
One of El Chapo’s sons betrayed Zambada García in July 2024 and handed him over to US authorities, sparking an ongoing civil war that has left thousands dead and missing across the country.
Search is authorized
Federal authorities have sent 1,190 troops to search for the Vizsla Silver crew, including 270 special forces, supported by helicopters and two surveillance planes. The project explores remote mountain areas in and around Concordia, which sits about 50 kilometers east of the coastal tourist town of Mazatlán.
The workers were taken from a house rented by the company in Concordia, said Sánchez Kondo.
Harfuch’s office did not respond to a request for comment seeking updates on the state’s operations.
Authorities have so far issued five separate search warrants as part of the investigation, including four in Concordia and one in Mazatlán, he said. The authorities seized three mobile phones, a laptop and identity cards belonging to the employees.
Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha said on Wednesday there were possible arrests related to the ongoing search for missing miners, according to local reports.
Global Affairs Canada has previously said that no Canadians are believed to be among the hostages.
The Canadian government is preparing for a major trade campaign with Mexico that begins on February 15.
