Mexican authorities said Friday that federal forces have recovered the body of one of 10 employees of a Canadian mining company who were kidnapped three weeks ago from a town in the Mexican state of Sinaloa.

The Attorney General’s Office issued a statement Friday evening saying that during the search for the kidnapped employees of Vizsla Silver Corp, “bodies and human remains” were found.

The press release states that one of the bodies “shares characteristics similar to those reported as missing” and that work is underway to confirm the identity.

The statement did not say how many more bodies were found.

10 employees of the Vancouver-based company were kidnapped on the morning of January 23 from the town of Concordia, located about 50 kilometers east of the tourist coastal city Mazatlan.

Vizsla Silver told CBC News in an emailed statement Friday night that she is “in contact with the Mexican authorities who are investigating and with the families of those affected.”

The company said in a statement that it could not comment further.

Vizsla Silver has already faced security concerns with its Panuco silver and gold exploration project in Sinaloa.

It paused operations in the field on April 4, 2025 due to “security conditions in the area,” according to the company’s filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Mexico’s Minister of Security and Civil Protection, Omar Harfuch, said the employees were suspected to have been abducted by the Sons-controlled faction of the Sinaloa cartel. Joaquin (El Chapo) Guzmán.

More to come