Mexican authorities detained a group of approximately 500 Central American migrants in the coastal state of Veracruz. Smugglers stuffed the migrants inside four tractor-trailers and were attempting to transport them from the southern part of Mexico to the U.S. border.

Francisco Garduno, the new head of Mexico’s National Immigration Institute (INM) announced the operation. According to Garduno, the four drivers vehicles were turned over to Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office. His agency took custody of the migrants and moved them to a station in the town of Acayucan, Veracruz.

Hoy se detuvieron 4 tractocamiones con indocumentados en la Tinaja Ver., los conductores y vehículos fueron asegurados y puestos a disposición de la @FGRMexico. Los aproximadamente 500 #migrantes conducidos a la estación migratoria de Acayucan, #Veracruz @INAMI_mx pic.twitter.com/V8s1KgrLF7 — Francisco Garduño Y. (@fgymexico) June 15, 2019

A series of videos of the moment when the migrants are released from the trailer were shared by journalist David De La Paz.

Autoridades mexicanas detectaron a unos 500 migrantes irregulares este sábado en cajas de cuatro tractocamiones en el oriental estado de Veracruz, informó el comisionado del Instituto Nacional de Migración @INAMI_mx , @fgymexico pic.twitter.com/oOICUovy0Y — David de la Paz (@daviddelapaz) June 16, 2019

Autoridades mexicanas detectaron a unos 500 migrantes irregulares este sábado en cajas de cuatro tractocamiones en el oriental estado de Veracruz, informó el comisionado del Instituto Nacional de Migración @INAMI_mx , @fgymexico pic.twitter.com/oOICUovy0Y — David de la Paz (@daviddelapaz) June 16, 2019

The detentions were carried out in two separate events along the same highway that connects the town of La Tinaja with Acayucan in the central part of the coastal state. The area where the operation took place is near the Isthmus of Tehuantepec — the area that represents the shortest distance between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean. That area has become one of the key pieces of Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s immigration enforcement plan. The president deployed federal officers in this region in an attempt to contain the growing number of migrants looking to reach the Texas border.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Border / Cartel Chronicles. He co-founded the Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Border / Cartel Chronicles. He co-founded the Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.