Driver arrested after nine bodies found in back of lorry

The driver of a lorry in which at least nine men were found dead alongside dozens suffering in sweltering conditions in San Antonio, Texas, is expected in court today.

Authorities have called the incident a case of ruthless human trafficking.

Thirty people, many in critical condition and suffering from heat stoke and exhaustion, were taken out of the vehicle parked outside a Walmart store that lacked air-conditioning or water supply, San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood said.

Outside temperatures topped 37.8ºC (100ºF).

Another person found in a wooded area nearby was being treated, the US Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas said. All the dead were adult males.

"All were victims of ruthless human smugglers indifferent to the well-being of their fragile cargo," said San Antonio-based US Attorney Richard Durbin Jr.

"These people were helpless in the hands of their transporters. Imagine their suffering, trapped in a stifling trailer."

The lorry's driver, named by the US Attorney's Office as James Mathew Bradley Jr, 60, of Clearwater, Florida, was arrested.

Several agencies have launched investigations into the case.

The dead men, who have not yet been identified, were discovered after officials were led to the trailer by a man who asked a Walmart employee for water.

San Antonio is about 150 miles (240km) north of the Mexico border.

Mexico's government said it deplored the deaths and that it had asked the authorities for an exhaustive investigation.

In a statement, it said its consul general in San Antonio was working to identify the victims' nationalities and, if necessary, repatriate their remains to Mexico.

US steps up raids

Raids on suspected illegal immigrants have increased across the United States in recent months, after President Donald Trump vowed to crack down on entrants without authorisation or overstaying their visas.

In Texas alone, federal immigration agents arrested 123 illegal immigrants with criminal records in an eight-day operation ending last week.

[caption id="attachment_3917" align="aligncenter" width="500"] A police officer works on the crime scene. ©REUTERS/Ray Whitehouse[/caption]

The San Antonio deaths come more than a decade after what is considered the worst immigrant smuggling case in US history, when 70 people were found stuffed into an 18-wheeler.

Nineteen died in the incident in Victoria, Texas, about 100 miles (160km) southeast of San Antonio, in May 2003.

McManus said those in the lorry, whose origins were unclear, ranged from school-age juveniles to adults in their 30s. He said the Department of Homeland Security had joined the investigation.

Experts have been warning that tougher immigration policies could make it harder to stop human trafficking. Measures tightening international borders encourage would-be migrants to turn to smugglers, while fear of deportation deters whistle-blowing, they said.

The Border Patrol has regularly reported finding suspected immigrants in trucks along the US border with Mexico.

This month, 72 Latin Americans were found in a trailer in Laredo.

In June, 44 people were found in the back of a vehicle in the same Texas city, which lies directly across the Rio Grande from Mexico.

San Antonio has a policy of not inquiring about the immigration status of people who come into contact with city officials or police.

It was among several cities in Texas that filed a federal lawsuit last month to block a state law set to take effect in September that would force them to cooperate closely with immigration agents.

"San Antonio will not turn its back on any man, woman, or child in need," Mayor Ron Nirenberg said in a statement responding to the lorry deaths.