A B.C. mining firm says 10 people have been taken from one of its project sites in western Mexico.
A Vancouver-based mining firm says 10 people have been abducted from one of its project sites in western Mexico.
Vizsla Silver said in a statement Thursday that “10 individuals have been taken” from the site in Concordia, a city in the state of Sinaloa.
“The incident is currently under investigation, and information remains limited,” the statement said. “Local authorities have been notified, and the company’s crisis management and security response teams are actively engaged.”
The mineral exploration company, which has been developing a silver and gold project called Panuco, says some activities at and around the site have been temporarily suspended “as a precautionary measure.”
The Sinaloa attorney general’s office says a 911 call from a legal representative of the company reported the abduction of 10 people on Jan. 24.
A statement Thursday says the agency is working with the military and local authorities to search for the abductees. A search warrant was executed on Tuesday as part of the investigation, the statement said.
Global Affairs Canada did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the situation.
The Association of Mining Engineers, Metallurgists and Geologists of Mexico called for swift intervention by authorities to ensure the workers’ safe return.
“We express our deep concern over the illegal deprivation of liberty, by unknown individuals, of 10 professionals from the mining industry,” said the statement, translated from its original Spanish.
The group said the abducted individuals “have performed their work honestly in the municipality of Concordia, Sinaloa.”
Local news outlets reported that the employees were taken by armed men from staff accommodations in Concordia on Jan. 23.
In a promotional video published in September 2023, Vizsla Silver said it had more than 200 employees at its Panuco mine project site, with 70 per cent of those workers coming from local communities.
Mike Pettingell, the company’s senior vice-president of business development, describes Vizsla as in the video as “a very well-capitalized, aggressive explorer—arguably the most aggressive junior explorer in the entire silver industry.”
Global Affairs Canada urges travellers to exercise extreme caution avoid non-essential travel in parts of Sinaloa, citing violent clashes between rival armed groups battling for control of the drug trade.
Vizsla Silver Vizsla Silver’s Panuco Project in Sinaloa, Mexico, is shown in this photo from the company’s website. (vizslasilvercorp.com)