Eylen Mariana Galan Herazo was a young Hispanic girl from Girón, Santander, Colombia, who disappeared while attempting to cross the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass, Texas, with her mother and older brother in November 2023. Her missing-person record lists her as three years old and gives November 1, 2023, as her last known contact, although Colombian news reports identify November 11, 2023, as the date of the tragedy and describe her as four years old.
Eylen was traveling with her 23-year-old mother, Yiini Paola Galán Herazo, and her six-year-old brother, Jesús David Martínez Galán, when the family encountered dangerous currents in the river separating Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, from Eagle Pass, Texas. What had begun as a journey toward a better future in the United States became a devastating ordeal when both children were swept away by the water, leaving their mother desperately searching for answers.
The family's journey began months earlier in Girón, a municipality near Bucaramanga in Colombia's Santander department. Yiini Paola had decided to leave her home country with her children, hoping to find employment, financial stability, and opportunities that she believed would improve their lives. According to accounts provided by relatives to Colombian journalists, the young mother had experienced financial difficulties and was determined to build a better future for Eylen and Jesús David. She reportedly departed Colombia with approximately 130,000 Colombian pesos and spent several months traveling north through Central America. Their difficult journey included crossing the Darién Gap, the hazardous wilderness connecting Colombia and Panama, where migrants frequently encounter dangerous terrain, harsh weather, and limited access to essential supplies. Despite the obstacles, the family continued toward the United States, eventually reaching the Mexican border city of Piedras Negras.
In November 2023, the family approached the Rio Grande, known in Mexico as the Río Bravo, intending to cross into Texas. The river is notoriously dangerous in certain areas because of its unpredictable currents, changing depths, and submerged hazards. According to Yiini Paola's account, they were crossing with a larger group of migrants when another person in the water became distressed and grabbed onto her for support. The sudden struggle caused several people to lose their balance, and in the confusion, she lost her grip on both children. Eylen and Jesús David were carried away by the powerful current before their mother could regain control of the situation. The incident unfolded rapidly, leaving the family separated in the river and turning what was supposed to be the final stage of their journey into a desperate emergency.
Yiini Paola later described the terrifying moment to Colombian journalists, explaining that another migrant had held onto her hand during the struggle and that everyone fell against one another. She recalled losing both children as the group struggled in the water. Other accounts from relatives indicated that she attempted to save them but also found herself in danger of drowning. A traveling companion reportedly helped her reach safety. Once out of the river, she remained near the crossing, hoping someone would locate her children. When no information became available, she approached United States Border Patrol personnel, believing authorities could assist with their rescue. The mother survived the crossing, but neither Eylen nor Jesús David was immediately located.
After the incident, Yiini Paola was transferred away from the border and eventually arrived at a migrant shelter in New York City. She told reporters that the journey from Texas took more than 30 hours and that she had received little information about her children's whereabouts. Isolated from her relatives in Colombia and struggling with the uncertainty of what had happened, she repeatedly sought updates about rescue and recovery efforts. During an interview with Caracol Radio on November 20, 2023, she described feeling devastated because so many days had passed without answers about her children. Her statements reflected the anguish of a mother who had survived a dangerous river crossing but had been separated from both of her young children.
Meanwhile, relatives in Girón began seeking assistance from Colombian authorities and diplomatic representatives. Family members contacted officials and appealed publicly for continued searches along the Rio Grande. Their situation became even more distressing when a relative reported receiving threatening communications from individuals claiming to have information about the missing children. According to Colombian news coverage, the callers demanded thousands of dollars and initially claimed that they had rescued the mother and her children. The family questioned those claims after establishing contact with Yiini Paola and confirming that she was alive and had not been reunited with her children. The threatening communications added to the family's suffering, but available reporting did not establish that the callers possessed either child or had reliable information concerning their whereabouts.
The search took a heartbreaking turn when authorities recovered the body of a young boy from the river. On November 20, 2023, Colombian consular officials confirmed that the remains were believed to be those of six-year-old Jesús David Martínez Galán. The identification was initially supported by descriptions of the clothing he had been wearing when he disappeared. Reports indicated that additional forensic procedures, including DNA testing, were considered necessary to establish identification conclusively. The discovery brought devastating news to the family, which had been hoping both children might be found alive. Colombian officials expressed condolences and indicated that assistance would continue for the mother while efforts to locate Eylen remained a priority.
For Eylen's relatives, the discovery of her brother intensified their fear about what might have happened to her. Her grandmother and other family members publicly pleaded for authorities to continue searching, emphasizing that the children had been extremely close and were rarely apart. Relatives remembered the siblings as companions who shared much of their young lives together. The family struggled with the painful reality that Jesús David had been recovered while Eylen's whereabouts remained unknown. In Colombia, loved ones continued following developments from thousands of miles away, hoping for information that could finally explain what had happened to the little girl after she disappeared into the river.
By December 5, 2023, Colombian news reports indicated that Eylen had still not been located. Her relatives expressed frustration over the limited information available from officials and the difficulty of coordinating inquiries between Colombia, Mexico, and the United States. Family members continued contacting consular representatives while appealing for additional searches and updates. The prolonged uncertainty also created tensions within the extended family, with some relatives reporting threats and accusations concerning responsibility for the tragedy. Despite these difficulties, Eylen's loved ones continued emphasizing the importance of finding her and obtaining a definitive answer about her fate.
Eylen's physical description provides identifying details for anyone reviewing her missing-person case. She was described as having black hair and black eyes, standing approximately 33 to 38 inches tall and weighing between 26 and 30 pounds when she disappeared. Her disappearance was documented in the United States National Missing and Unidentified Persons System under case number MP112303. The Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office in Edinburg, Texas, was identified as the investigating agency, with agency case number 23-50041. The disappearance was reported to that agency on November 29, 2023. These records provide a formal account of the incident, including the location near Eagle Pass and the circumstances in which the child was swept away by the strong river current.
The circumstances surrounding Eylen's disappearance underscore the dangers faced by families attempting irregular border crossings, particularly when young children are involved. Her mother had traveled across multiple countries seeking greater economic security and opportunities for her children, but the journey ended in an unimaginable family tragedy. Although the circumstances strongly suggest that Eylen was placed in life-threatening danger, the information publicly available does not establish a confirmed recovery or official determination of her fate. The discovery of her brother's body and the absence of definitive information concerning Eylen left her relatives confronting two different forms of grief: the confirmed loss of one child and the continuing uncertainty surrounding the other.
Eylen Mariana Galán Herazo's case remains a deeply distressing account of a Colombian family's attempt to reach the United States and the separation of two young siblings from their mother in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass, Texas. The November 2023 incident resulted in the confirmed recovery of her older brother, while subsequent reporting documented her family's continued efforts to locate her. No verified later recovery or conclusive identification of Eylen was established in the publicly available information reviewed. Her story represents both the devastating consequences that dangerous border crossings can have for vulnerable families and the enduring emotional burden of a child's disappearance. At its heart is a little girl whose family set out seeking a safer and more promising future, only to be left searching for answers after a sudden tragedy in the waters separating Mexico and the United States.Last Seen: Nov 1, 2023
