TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — The body of Ildefonso Martinez arrived on a Friday night last April as John Doe. For examiners at the Pima County morgue, his was an unusual case. Not in how he died — making the same journey that has claimed thousands of illegal immigrants — but rather because he was identified so quickly.
The death of migrants crossing the border has long been a tragic consequence of illegal immigration. For some, it is also a motivator in pushing Congress to act this year on immigration reform.
In the last 15 years, at least 5,513 migrants have been found dead along the U.S.-Mexico border, including 463 in fiscal year 2012, the Border Patrol reports.
The Tucson sector located 177 bodies in 2012, including that of Martinez.
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