Marco Paz, spokesperson for the Sonora Citizens’ Committee for Public Safety, warned of the increase in a phenomenon that for years was mostly concentrated in central and southern Mexico, but which is now appearing in Sonora: forced recruitment.
“We are concerned about the forced recruitment of children and young people. Lured by promises of attractive jobs on social media, these young people are forced to work for organized crime.”
These offers are primarily disseminated through social media, promising high salaries, attractive benefits, and few requirements. However, upon attending these supposed job interviews, the young people are kidnapped and forced to join organized crime groups and carry out illicit activities under threat.
The spokesperson points out that this practice is linked to the blows that criminal groups have suffered in recent years, such as arrests and confrontations, which have created a need to replace members within their ranks.
“Given the need criminal groups have to replace their losses, they are resorting to whatever they can find, and who is most susceptible to these kinds of deceptive offers? Young people and children.”
Although Paz Pellat acknowledges that there are no official figures on how many people have been recruited into organized crime under these circumstances, the situation regarding missing persons in the state is critical, with more than 800 people having disappeared during 2025, and municipalities like San Luis Río Colorado still having more than 50 people missing.
At the same time, civil organizations and collectives have detected an increase in informal reports related to deceptive job offers, many of which end in disappearances.
The main recommendation is for parents to monitor their children’s digital activities, promote education and communication at home, and be wary of jobs that seem too good to be true and lack requirements, as these could be the gateway to forced recruitment that puts their lives at risk.
Source: meganoticias
