On Wednesday, five men were found dead in an abandoned pickup truck on the Benito Juárez highway, also known as La Costera, in the San Pedro district of Navolato, Sinaloa. Two of them were identified by their families as father and son. They are Luis Ramón Flores Cevallos, 38, and Luis Armando Vallejo, 19, from the municipality of Mazatlán, for whom a search warrant had been issued. According to unofficial media reports, both had been kidnapped along with three other people on February 7 in Ahome. The group was traveling to transfer a woman identified as Yuri “N,” who was released hours later with bruises and signs of torture, while the five men remained missing. The discovery of the bodies occurred around noon on Wednesday, when motorists reported a white pickup truck abandoned at kilometer 14 of the Benito Juárez bypass. Upon inspecting the vehicle, the five bodies were found in the truck bed, some with signs of torture and in an advanced state of decomposition. According to local media, one of the men had mutilations and another had been beheaded. According to unofficial information collected by the media, the other three victims would be Juan Antonio “N”, 29, and José Ángel “N”, 17; and Heriberto “N”, 30 years old. Family members of Luis Ramón and Luis Armando went to the Forensic Medical Service (SEMEFO) at the State Security Complex in Aguaruto on Thursday morning to visually identify the bodies. So far, the Sinaloa State Attorney General's Office has not officially confirmed the information, so the other three men found have not yet been identified, and their information remains pending confirmation. Reports indicate that a pattern of kidnappings and disappearances has been recorded in the region, causing alarm among neighbors and local authorities due to conflicts between armed groups. To date, authorities have not released details on possible suspects, detainees, or progress in the investigations.
