The News

Number of Corpses Exhumed in Jojutla Rises to 19

Forensic investigators work in the exhumation and identification of a mass grave at a cemetery that is believed to have been used to bury unidentified victims of violent crime in Jojutla, near Mexico City, Mexico March 22, 2017. The banner reads "Our children are missing". REUTERS/Margarito Perez Retana

After three days of work in a graveyard in Jojutla, a total of 19 corpses have been exhumed from a mass grave and will in turn be buried in the graveyard Jardines del Recuerdo in Cuautla.

Efforts to identify the bodies include the collection of genetic samples from family members of missing people, according to a statement issued by the government of Morelos.

Relatives of missing persons wait for news of their loved ones, near the perimeter, where forensic investigators work in the exhumation and identification of a mass grave. Photo: Reuters/Margarito Pérez Retana

The transportation of the corpses was carried out under the surveillance of civil society groups involved in the process. Legal and psychological services were made available for family members since the beginning of the exhumation activities, as well as hepatitis, influenza and tetanus shots provided by Morelos Health Services.