22 March 2023 , 17:31
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Two siblings missing in Mexico are in "imminent danger" just weeks after a group of Americans were kidnapped and murdered by a drug cartel.
Hugo Yarset Monfort Luna, 9, and Aranza Yosemiti Monfort Luna, 16, were spotted last Friday in Nuevo Leon, according to the state attorney general's office.
Police have since issued an amber alert as there remains confusion over whether the children were visiting the country or if they lived there.
Authorities confirmed Aranza was last spotted wearing a pink shirt, black trousers, a grey jumper and blue trainers.
She also had a black jumper wrapped around her waist and had been carrying a brown handbag.
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9-year-old Hugo, who is 3ft 6ins, has dark straight brown hair and dark eyes.
A US State Department spokesperson confirmed the twins were missing and pledged to help authorities with their investigations.
They said in a statement: “We are [aware] of reports of two American citizens missing in Nuevo Leon.”
Aranza Yosemiti Monfort Luna has been reported missing along with her brother (Fiscalía Nuevo León)Authorities have not revealed any further information regarding the disappearance.
The missing brothers comes just weeks after four Americans were kidnapped at gunpoint during a trip to Mexico.
Latavia 'Tay' McGee headed to Mexico for a tummy tuck, according to her friends and family, when she was joined by her cousin Shaeed Woodard, and friends Zindell Brown and Eric James Williams.
The four were traveling Friday in a white minivan with North Carolina licence plates when they came under fire shortly after entering the city of Matamoros from Brownsville, at the southernmost tip of Texas near the Gulf coast.
Members of the Gulf Cartel opened fire on the American's car in the middle of the street on March 3.
Latavia was caught on video being escorted to a pickup truck by a cartel member.
Zindell Brown and Shaeed Woodard were killed along with a Mexican member of the public hit in the cross fire.
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The two surviving Americans, Eric James Williams and Latavia "Tay" McGee, were rescued by authorities after three days being held by the gunmen.
The Drug Enforcement Administration has since identified José 'El Contador' Cárdenas as the leader of the Gulf Cartel, which has been around since 1930 and is based out of Tamaulipas.
Mexican authorities have confirmed Mr Cárdenas was taken into custody on February 27 in Mexico City and is set to be extradited to the US.
He is currently the leader of "The Cyclones" and "The Scorpions" - two powerful cartel groups in the state of Tamaulipas.
In addition, he is reportedly a key figure in the sale of drugs and guns in the state.
He is also accused of being behind the massacre of 15 people in Reynosa in June, 2021.