María Tasej Gonon, 23, left Guatemala on August 22, 2020, aiming to cross into the United States. She stayed in contact with family while traveling and on September 8, 2020, was with a group of 11 people attempting to cross the border near Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. During the desert crossing she reportedly passed out from exhaustion or dehydration and became separated from the group.

One member of the group says the smuggler or coyote left María with two bottles of water; she later regained consciousness but could not find or catch up with the others. Her family’s last contact was the day of the crossing, and no further information has emerged. Her disappearance remains unresolved and is one of many cases involving migrants who go missing while attempting border crossings.

Anyone with information about María’s whereabouts is asked to contact authorities or organizations working on missing migrant cases.