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Migrants on a truck in the Mexican state of Veracruz (icon image)
Photo: CLAUDIO CRUZ / AFP
Mexico's immigration authorities found 343 migrants, including 103 unaccompanied minors, in an abandoned truck container on the side of a highway.
According to the authority, the truck trailer was discovered Sunday night in the hot state of Veracruz on the Gulf Coast.
The route is often used by smugglers to bring people from southeastern Mexico to the US border.
The migrants are doing well and it is unclear why the driver fled, authorities said.
In the past, migrants have sometimes been found dead in abandoned cargo containers.
But the people who were found on Sunday were unharmed, and the contents of the container show that the smugglers are becoming increasingly professional.
Holes were cut in the ceiling of the truck trailer for fans and air intake.
The migrants wore different colored bracelets, apparently to identify them as clients of specific smugglers.
Most unaccompanied minors were from Guatemala.
Migrants who make it to the US often pay smugglers to fetch their children.
According to the Mexican immigration authorities, the adult migrants are mainly from Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Ecuador.
The unaccompanied children are placed in the care of the Veracruz Family Authority.
In the case of adults, their residence status in Mexico will be determined.
jso/AP/Reuters