The head of one of several Sonoran groups dedicated to searching for missing loved ones hopes to soon return to the state after fleeing in response to threats.

After a brief protest in front of the headquarters of the Mexican Attorney General’s Office, Ceci Patricia Flores, founder of the Madres Buscadoras de Sonora, said she recently received several assurances from an official: that federal authorities would take over the cases of one of her missing son and the murder of a fellow searching group member in July, and that threats made against her would be investigated.

“I need to return to look for my sons because nobody else is looking for them,” she said.

Flores said she left after the murder of Aranza Ramos, who joined a searching group after her husband disappeared.