Ernesto Garnica, 23, of Brownsville, Texas, was last seen August 31, 2017, after traveling to Matamoros, Tamaulipas to visit family. He had crossed into Mexico on August 30 after leaving his job in Los Fresnos. After August 31 his phone went straight to voicemail and no further contact was made.

Days after his disappearance a burned-out Jeep Liberty was found on the side of a highway near Rio Bravo; a body located inside that vehicle was not identified as Garnica. His bank accounts were emptied shortly after he vanished. Garnica’s mother remains convinced he is still alive and continues to plea for information.

Cross-border disappearances raise difficult jurisdictional and investigative gaps that families confront. Does anyone have information about Ernesto’s movements in Matamoros or contacts he might have had after August 30, 2017?