Mexican Mayor Nancy Napoles Accused of Faking Kidnapping for $2 Million as Prosecutors Seek July 9 Testimony
Updated
Updated · CBS New York · Jun 19
Mexican Mayor Nancy Napoles Accused of Faking Kidnapping for $2 Million as Prosecutors Seek July 9 Testimony
3 articles · Updated · CBS New York · Jun 19
Summary
Prosecutors in Tlaxcala said Tenancingo Mayor Nancy Napoles staged her own abduction to justify diverting about $2 million in public funds as ransom, and ordered her to testify on July 9.
40 million pesos — about $2.3 million — was the supposed ransom demand, but authorities said a witness who saw armed men force Napoles into a car alerted police, disrupting the plan.
Three alleged kidnappers have been arrested, and investigators now say Napoles' husband and brother-in-law organized the false kidnapping to cover money "already embezzled"; both men are fugitives.
Napoles, a Morena politician, denied the accusations in a social media video, calling them politicized and saying she would cooperate as President Claudia Sheinbaum touts anti-corruption as a pillar of her administration.
The case adds to a string of allegations against Mexican officials, after U.S. prosecutors in April charged Sinaloa's governor and nine other current or former officials with drug and weapons offenses.