PHOENIX — The disappearance of people in Mexico is a serious issue and for many, the process to find these people, alive or even dead, can seem too long and complicated. To make the process a bit easier and faster, the government of Sonora has created a tool that was recently launched.
In early May the Fiscalía General de Justicia del Estado de Sonora (Attorney General’s Office of Sonora) launched an app to help find or identify missing people within the state.
The idea for developing the app, IdSonora, started during a monthly meeting the government has with 16 active groups dedicated to finding human remains in the state. The purpose is to help local missing people or identify human remains found.
“The app expedites the process of identification by making public characteristics about remains we had found,” said Lupita Orduño from the attorney’s office.
Once the app is downloaded, people will be able to find pictures of objects (clothing, jewelry, purses, etc.) and marks (tattoos, scars, etc.) associated with bodies found that can lead to a person being identified.
When the pictures are uploaded they receive a number. When someone identifies an object or mark, they can enter that number in the app and a phone number of the forensic office where the remains were found will appear in the app. The next step is to go in person and finalize the process of identification of remains and/or DNA testing.
The app also has an area with active AMBER alerts and Prococolo ALBA. Protocolo ALBA activates an immediate search for missing girls or women in Mexico.
The app launched on May 5 and, according to a tweet from Sonora's Governor Alfonso Durazo, on May 9 a boy returned home due to the mom being able to identify his clothes in the app.
For those who have a family member missing, they need to have and do the following to make a report:
- Birth certificate of the missing person
- Recent pictures
- A description of what the person was wearing last time seen
- Go to the closest procuraduría in the state.
“This is a unique tool in Mexico”, added Orduño. She was referring to the fact that Sonora is the only state in the country with that technology available to help find missing citizens and identify remains.
IdSonora can be downloaded for free in Google Play and Apple stores in Mexico. The app is not currently available in the US.
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