Danger for Tourists in Mexican Border Towns

Feb. 5, 2004 — -- In the last six months, more than two dozen Americans have been abducted or have vanished along the border in Mexico, up from just three or four reported abductions each year since 2000.

On Friday, two Mississippi men were found dead on a highway near a Mexican border city, one shot in the head.

The U.S. State Department has issued a safety warning for Americans traveling along the border -- its third since August.

Authorities believe that the drug cartels operating on the Mexican side of the border are fighting over power and territory. They say beautiful women walking the streets become the spoils of war, and there's little American authorities can do about it.

Parents Wait and Worry

Two of those missing young women are Brenda Cisneros, 23, and Yvette Martinez, 27. The last time the women were seen was Sept. 17, 2004. It was Cisneros' birthday, and the best friends had left their homes in Laredo, Texas, to attend a concert on the Mexican side of the border.

Their parents are still waiting for them to come home.

"It's hell," said Martinez's mother, Antonieta Slemaker. "It's very hard, my heart is broken. I need her. I miss her. And I need to know, where is she?"

Martinez's parents are risking their lives by speaking out. The Mexican drug lords do not like the attention. The FBI believes other parents are not coming forward, and some of them may be quietly paying off ransoms.

Little Help from Authorities

William Slemaker, Martinez's stepfather, told "Good Morning America" they won't be stopped by fear of retaliation.

"It's been four months. Fear alone is not going to deter us," he said.

Slemaker says the Mexican police have been no help to them, and American officials have little authority to do anything.

So Slemaker went searching on his own. He found Yvette's car at an impound run by the local police.

"They had it way in the back, like they were hiding it," Slemaker told ABC News' Steve Osunsami.

Despite the dangers and the lack of help from Mexican authorities, the families of Martinez and Cisneros are not giving up. They have set up a Web site where anyone can leave an anonymous tip. So far, they haven't received a single clue.

Now Antonieta and William Slemaker are warning other parents not to let their children cross the border.

"Even if they are adults, advise them not to go," said Antonieta.