Mexican president vows to prosecute "negligent" officials who left migrants to die in facility fire

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador told reporters Wednesday that immigration and security officials guarding the Ciudad Juárez holding facility that burned down Monday night, killing an estimated 40 men, were “negligent” in their actions and that there would be consequences for their actions.

“From the investigation it is clear that there was negligence, but we still need to know exactly what happened,” he said at a Wednesday morning press conference. “There will be no impunity,” he added.

The Mexican president confirmed that among those who may be held responsible for were state employed immigration officers and private security personnel. A local county prosecutor’s office is currently investigating the event, he said.

The fire has been ranked as one of the country’s deadliest in recent years.

López Obrador originally blamed the migrants for the fire, suggesting that Venezuelans started it intentionally as a result of getting news of their deportation.

That narrative was contradicted by a 30 second video that was posted on Facebook by a local human rights group that depicted many of the migrants desperately trying to kick open padlocked doors to break free as guards paced outside until the room was filled with smoke.

“We have preliminary versions, but we want to have all the elements,” the Mexican president said.

To date, authorities have apologized to families in six different Latin American countries in the wake of releasing the names and nationalities of the victims, most of whom were from Guatemala, while others origins were traced back to Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, and Venezuela, officials said.

One of Mexico's top foreign affairs officials, Marcelo Ebrard said their office had contacted officials in those countries “to report the tragedy that occurred in Ciudad Juárez and support their consulates to help victims and affected families.”

In a statement released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection Acting Commissioner Troy A. Miller, he said his office “is prepared to use humanitarian parole on a case-by-case basis to allow seriously injured individuals to receive critical care at medical facilities in the United States.”