Missing persons in Mexico, the “perfect crime”: crisis over manipulation of figures

Missing persons in Mexico are the paradigm of the “perfect crime”; study by Causa en Común reveals crisis due to manipulation of figures and lack of justice.

Mexico is facing an unprecedented crisis regarding the disappearance of people , with figures that exceed the records of the so-called "dirty war" and that continue to increase, according to data from the National Registry of Missing and Unlocated Persons (RNPDNO).

Although at the beginning of his term, Andrés Manuel López Obrador assured that the search for missing persons would be a priority, during his administration Mexico registered the highest number of missing persons in its history.

And the institutions of investigation, search and identification were ineffective, highlights the report “Names without bodies and bodies without names” by the organization Causa en Común.

The manipulation of the figures for missing persons in Mexico and the ineffectiveness of the search system make it even more difficult to locate missing persons and generate distrust in institutions.

During the López Obrador administration, a “Generalized Search Strategy” and a new “census” were implemented, which, according to experts, sought to dilute the RNPDNO figures.

Three new categories were created – “located persons”, “persons without sufficient data to identify” and “persons without clues to search for them” – without any reference in either the General Law or the Standardized Search Protocol.

The reclassification raised questions about whether the federal government was still actively searching for missing persons.

At the time of publication of the Causa en Común report, there were two official figures for missing persons: one from the National Search Commission (CNB) and another from the federal government.

The official “census” website only showed a breakdown of figures that, using the three new categories, reduced the 110,964 registered disappearances to just 12,377, La Silla Rota reports.

The RNPDNO, for its part, continued to update the number of missing persons upwards, reporting 122,300 missing persons until February 2025.

The ineffectiveness of the search system is reflected in the irrelevance of the issue on the agendas of the country's prosecutors.

The National Conference of Justice Administration (CNPJ) does not establish compliance parameters for agreements related to the investigation of disappearances and forensic identification work.

The budget allocated to the Attorney General's Office ( FGR ) for the investigation and search for persons has been reduced by 40% from 2014 to 2025, which limits its ability to carry out thorough and effective investigations.

Furthermore, Mexico lacks a comprehensive policy for the development of its forensic capabilities, which leads to the accumulation of bodies in morgues without the conditions for their identification.

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The Extraordinary Forensic Identification Mechanism (MEIF), created to expedite the identification and return of unidentified bodies and remains, never acquired formality nor did it have resources earmarked for its implementation.

The lack of coordination and complementarity between the Search Commissions and the specialized prosecutors' offices, as well as the lack of trained personnel and sufficient resources, contribute to impunity in cases of disappearance.

In fact, 99% of reports of missing persons in Mexico filed with state prosecutors and the FGR between 2019 and 2022 remain unpunished , making disappearance the paradigm of the “perfect crime.”

• As of December 31, 2024, the RNPDNO recorded a total of 120,628 missing persons in Mexico .
• 89% of the reported disappearances have occurred in the last 18 years, coinciding with the rise of organised crime.
• 2024 closed as the year with the highest number of disappearances recorded in history, with a total of 13,449.
• Disappearances of women and minors reached historic highs in 2024, with an increase of 54% and 76% respectively, compared to 2023.
• During López Obrador's six-year term, 53,261 disappearances were recorded, 64% more than during Enrique Peña Nieto's six-year term and 215% more than during Felipe Calderón's six-year term.
• In the first 100 days of Claudia Sheinbaum's government, 4,120 missing persons were registered, an average of 41 cases per day, surpassing the records of previous governments.

• From 2006 to April 2023, 5,698 clandestine graves have been located in all entities of the country, with the findings concentrated in Veracruz, Tamaulipas, Sinaloa, Chihuahua and Colima.
• 50% of these clandestine graves were located during López Obrador's six-year term.
• 4,701 corpses and 6,072 human remains have been counted in clandestine graves during López Obrador's six-year term.
• Manipulation of records and ineffectiveness of the search system
• During the López Obrador administration, a “Generalized Search Strategy” and a new “census” were implemented, which, according to experts, sought to dilute the RNPDNO figures.
• Three new categories were created – “located persons”, “persons without sufficient data to identify” and “persons without clues to search for them” – without any reference in either the General Law or the Standard Search Protocol.
• To date, there are two official figures for missing persons , one from the CNB and another from the federal government.
• The National Conference of Justice Administration (CNPJ) has shown irrelevance to the issue in the agendas of the country's prosecutors.
• The budget allocated to the FGR for the investigation and search for persons has been reduced, only in nominal terms, by 40% from 2014 to 2025.
• Mexico continues to lack a comprehensive policy for the development of its forensic capabilities, which has led to the accumulation of bodies in the country's morgues without the conditions that allow for their identification.
• The Extraordinary Forensic Identification Mechanism (MEIF) never became formal, as to date it lacks guidelines for its operation and allocated resources for its implementation.
• 99% of the reports of disappearances filed with state prosecutors and the FGR between 2019 and 2022 remain unpunished.
• Twelve states still do not have their own law on the disappearance of persons and in 15 states the criminal types are not consistent with the General Law.
• State Search Commissions are dependent on federal subsidies distributed by the CNB, which has limited the development of the CNB itself.
• Lack of confidence in authorities
• The ineffectiveness of the prosecutors' offices has forced the victims' families to bear the physical, psychological and economic costs of the searches, even losing their lives in the process.
• Between 2010 and 2024, 16 female searchers have been murdered or disappeared , 13 of them during López Obrador's six-year term.
• Given this situation, civil society organizations and experts are demanding urgent action by the Mexican State to guarantee the effective search for missing persons , access to justice and comprehensive reparation for victims and their families .