Vizsla workers’ disappearance exposes mining insecurity in Mexico

The disappearance of ten workers linked to the Pánuco project of Vizsla Silver on January 23 in Sinaloa has once again brought to the forefront the security risks facing mining in Mexico and their impact on investment and operations in the sector.

Vizsla Silver confirmed that ten people were deprived of their liberty from a residential subdivision near the project site, in the municipality of Concordia, where engineers, technical staff and other professionals directly involved in the initiative’s activities were staying.

According to relatives and local media, an armed group violently broke into the site and took the workers away, and there has been no communication with them since. Vizsla reported that the case is under investigation, that the local authorities were notified, and that it activated its crisis management and security response teams.

The mining company added that it preventively suspended certain activities at the site and its surroundings, and assured that its immediate priority is the safety and well-being of the people involved.

Relatives of the workers reported negligence and lack of information on the part of the company and the authorities, and indicated that the engineers were deprived of their freedom as they were preparing to travel to the mine to begin their workday. The absence of news for several days increased public concern and pressure on state and federal authorities.

In response to the case, the governor of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha, reported on Sunday via X that, on the instructions of the president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, and the secretary of National Defense, Ricardo Trevilla, the search operation was significantly reinforced.

The deployment includes 1,190 security personnel from the Army, Special Forces, National Guard and ministerial agents, as well as armed helicopters and surveillance aircraft, with the objective of locating the missing workers.

Reactions

The alleged kidnapping generated reactions in the mining sector. The mining chamber Camimex expressed its “deep concern” and indicated that it is maintaining communication with the company and the authorities, while the Association of Mining, Metallurgical and Geological Engineers of Mexico (AIMMGM) demanded the prompt intervention of the state government so that the professionals return alive.

For Eduardo Ordóñez, a political risk and security specialist consulted by BNamericas, the case reveals structural flaws in risk management and in the security environment in which mining companies operate in some regions of the country.

The analyst explained that the investigation file was opened as a “disappearance committed by private individuals” and not as kidnapping, a classification that, from a legal standpoint, avoids formally recognizing a possible ransom demand and leaves multiple hypotheses open regarding the motives of organized crime.

The crime of disappearance committed by private individuals is defined in Article 34 of the General Law on Enforced Disappearance, the specialist specified.

Ordóñez also warned about the company's implicit responsibility, recalling that in April 2025 Vizsla Silver suspended operations for about a month in Pánuco due to security issues, and later announced their resumption after assuring that the situation had improved.

The kidnapping of the ten workers suggests, according to the expert, that these risks were not resolved at their root, which exposes the company to a situation of high legal and reputational vulnerability. “The bad thing is that it will not set a legal precedent, but will be just one more kidnapping, even though the company is 100% responsible,” he said.

The consultant, who is also a lawyer, recalled that in Mexico companies or legal entities are liable for damages to employees if the crime is committed in their name, for their benefit, or due to a lack of organizational control, in accordance with the National Code of Criminal Procedure (CNPP).

This includes serious accidents due to negligence, omission of safety measures, negligent homicide or bodily injury, with penalties that may include fines, closure, dissolution and, in serious cases, disqualification, added Ordóñez.

The episode comes at a sensitive time for Vizsla Silver. Days before the incident, the company had reiterated its intention to start the Pánuco project in the second half of this year, once the necessary permits are obtained, with the goal of beginning production in 2027.

The project is considered strategic due to its scale and the silver and gold resources it concentrates in southern Sinaloa.

Beyond the immediate impact on Vizsla, the case caused shock in the Mexican mining industry by reinforcing the perception that operating in certain regions of the country entails direct risks to the safety of personnel, as well as higher costs and an environment of uncertainty for investment.

(The original version of this content was written in Spanish)