SAPD said they believed it was an intentional act against the memorial honoring the 53 migrants who died of heat stroke in June 2022.
SAN ANTONIO — For much of the nearly three years since the Quintana Road human smuggling tragedy, Angie Olivera has worked to ensure the migrant victims are remembered.
She helps maintain the makeshift memorial organized in their honor – 53 crosses, one for each victim who died of heat stroke after being transported to San Antonio on a semitruck without working air conditioning in June 2022 – on a weekly basis.
But now, Olivera believes the site has been desecrated. She said she arrived to southeast-San Antonio memorial Saturday morning to find nearly all 53 crosses lying on the ground.
San Antonio police who arrived to investigate the site said they also believe it was intentional.
Quintana Road crosses ‘knocked down’
Olivera said she believed the crosses were knocked down intentionally, saying they managed to remain upright against strong winds in recent weeks. She also said other aspects of the memorial were visibly destroyed, including holes puncturing a board with pictures of the victims, the youngest of which was 13 years old.
The June 27, 2022, incident is considered the deadliest human smuggling event in U.S. history. Dozens of migrants from Honduras, Mexico and Guatemala were cramped together with no water or air conditioning.
Only 14 people survived the brutal conditions.
Below is what the site looked like before they were knocked down.
San Antonio police arrived later on Saturday morning to investigate. The site has been vandalized previously, including in November 2022 when a woman admitted to setting part of the memorial on fire.
Local artists have also worked to create a mural to remember the victims.
Just this week, a federal jury convicted two men for their roles in the 2022 smuggling tragedy. Several others had already pleaded guilty, and another alleged conspirator appeared in federal court this week after being extradited to the U.S.
This is a developing story.