An activist known for organizing and leading massive caravans of migrants seeking to cross Mexico to reach the United States was detained in the southern state of Chiapas, according to a report by security authorities.

Luis García Villagran was arrested in Tapachula (Chiapas) and placed at the disposal of the federal prosecutor's office, which is holding him in a prison in that city, according to data from the National Registry of Arrests of the Ministry of Security.

The arrest suspends the holding of a migrant march, scheduled for Wednesday, which was planned to leave Tapachula for Mexico City.

The objective of the mobilization is to demand speed in the regularization procedures for numerous foreigners stranded in this region, said the NGO Pueblo Sin Fronteras.

According to Pueblo Sin Fronteras, Garcia Villagran was apprehended by federal agents after meeting with migrants who were planning to participate in the mobilization.

The reported capture has sparked fear among hundreds of migrants who were organizing in Tapachula to march on Wednesday.

García Villagran is accused of "alleged organized crime charges," said Irineo Mujica, director of the NGO, in a statement, who demanded his release.

Both Mexican activists have been linked to the organization of caravans, some of thousands of Central Americans and Venezuelans, who try to reach the border and then cross into the United States.

In November 2021, when more than 1,000 migrants were advancing towards northern Mexico, Then-U.S. Ambassador Ken Salazar accused Mujica and García Villagrán of filling “the pockets of money that go to human traffickers and criminals.” The Attorney General’s Office did not immediately confirm the activist’s arrest. For decades, Mexico has been a transit point for thousands of migrants seeking to cross into the United States, a dangerous journey in which they are the target of abuse by both authorities and criminals.