Body of young San Diego man abducted in Tijuana recovered

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The body of a young San Diego man who was kidnapped in Tijuana, Mexico, nearly two years ago has been recovered, his mother said.

News of the recovery of the body of Miguel Anthony Rendon, who was 19 when he disappeared, came from the FBI several weeks ago, said his mother, Emma Carolina Medrano Gallardo, who lives in San Diego’s City Heights neighborhood.

“That moment, it was like, my hope is gone, but it was like a relief, finally. I will get to have him back and know where he is,” Medrano, who led many searches for her son, told the KGTV television station.

Her son’s body was transported from Tijuana to San Diego earlier this month, Telemundo 20 reported. Thousands of unsolved disappearances have occurred in Mexico.

Medrano’s nightmare began in May 2020 when she was living in Tijuana and her son crossed the border to visit his girlfriend and to surprise his mother.

Medrano received a late-night telephone call.

“In Spanish, they said, ‘Lady, we have your son. We need this much money,’” Medrano told KGTV.

The abduction was confirmed with a subsequent video call.

“My heart just almost stopped,” said Medrano. “He was tied up and bloody with his face. He could barely talk.”

Medrano’s ex-husband made a ransom payment at the border while she was told to wait for her son at another location.

A fruitless six-hour wait for her son to be over became months of hoping for a phone call that never came. She recalled him as smiling, funny and having goals.

“Hopefully there is justice, so they don’t get to do this to anyone else or other kids,” she said.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise funds for Rendon’s funeral.