NOGALES, Ariz. — A Mormon mother from Goodyear whose detention in a Mexico jail on suspicion of drug smuggling made international headlines, inspired a “Free Yanira” hashtag on Twitter and won the attention of politicians on both sides of the border was freed by a judge late Thursday after spending nine days in jail.
A small sedan carrying Yanira Maldonado and her family members could be seen crossing through the Nogales port of entry at 12:20 a.m. Friday morning.
Family members said a surveillance video shown during a court hearing Thursday helped prove that Yanira Maldonado was not trying to smuggle bundles of marijuana as had been alleged by Mexican federal authorities last week.
News of Maldonado’s release late Thursday drew reaction from Arizona politicians who have taken an interest in her plight, including members of the state’s congressional delegation.
U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., who has been assisting the family, confirmed on Twitter that she was being set free. He tweeted at 10:28 p.m.: “Great news. Just had it confirmed by Consul General. Yanira Maldonado has been released.”
Rep. Matt Salmon, R-Mesa, also released a statement saying he was thrilled that Maldonado’s release, which her family began to anticipate Thursday afternoon, was finally a reality.
“I received encouraging reports from her husband Gary earlier today that her release looked promising and was constantly assured in my conversations with U.S. and Mexican officials that this situation would be resolved fairly and quickly,” Salmon wrote. “I am heartened that this was the case and Mrs. Maldonado is now coming home where she belongs.”
Family spokesman Brandon Klippel told the media about 10 p.m. that Maldonado was being freed from the jail in Nogales, Sonora, where she had been held since May 22. Media saw her leave the jail just after 11 p.m. into the waiting arms of her husband and other family members.
Klippel, brother-in-law of Yanira Maldonado’s husband, Gary, said she would immediately cross the border into the United States.
Her husband, Gary, said at a news conference earlier Thursday that the family was optimistic Maldonado, 42, would be released after surveillance video showed her boarding a bus in Mexico on her way back to Arizona carrying two blankets, two water bottles and her purse, but no drugs. She had been arrested after soldiers found drugs under her seat on the bus.
“She was in a good mood because she feels she is going to get out,” he said.
His father, Larry Maldonado, said he was among a room full of people allowed to watch the 20-minute surveillance video before it was turned over to the judge, who later decided to dismiss the drug-smuggling case. Her attorney subpoenaed the bus company to obtain the tape.
Had she been found guilty, she could have faced 10 years in prison in Mexico, Larry said.
Yanira’s arrest drew international attention after family members began publicizing the case on social media. They insisted she was not guilty and said she was the victim of a nightmarish mistake that turned the lives of her and her husband upside down.
Flake and U.S. Rep. Matt Salmon, R-Ariz., have been in contact with family members as well as with U.S. State Department officials and officials from the Mexican Embassy.
On Thursday, Mexican officials told The Arizona Republic that Yanira was detained because Mexican soldiers found 12.3 pounds of marijuana hidden under her seat and an empty seat near her while she was traveling on a commercial passenger bus with her husband.
The couple were sitting together, with Gary in the aisle seat and Yanira in the window seat, said Larry, who added that there were empty seats around them.
“As a matter of fact, she was sitting over the drugs. So, because of that, she was arrested as a suspect of drug trafficking,” said Denise Coronado, a spokeswoman for the regional office of Mexico’s Secretariat of National Defense in Sonora. Coronado said the bus driver was also arrested, which is standard protocol.
Mexican soldiers found the drugs after the bus was stopped at 8 a.m. May 22 for a routine inspection near Querobabi in the state of Sonora, Coronado said. Querobabi is about 60 miles north of Hermosillo on the highway between Hermosillo and Nogales.
The case was then turned over to federal prosecutors, who are responsible for investigating whether the drugs belonged to Yanira, Coronado said.
Coronado said soldiers have found marijuana hidden on commercial passenger buses in the past, but “it is not common.”
Patricia Monroy, a spokeswoman for the Mexican Attorney General’s Office in Sonora, and Lydia Antonio de la Garza, a spokeswoman for the Mexican Embassy, declined to answer questions about the case.
Yanira and Gary, 41, were returning to the Valley after attending a funeral for Yanira’s aunt near Los Mochis in Sinaloa, the Mexican state south of Sonora, when the bus passed through the military checkpoint, Larry said.
Family members presented testimony and evidence to try to prove Yanira was not guilty, he said. Five witnesses testified in court on her behalf on Tuesday, including her husband, Larry said. Two relatives who drove Yanira and Gary to the bus station and two bus passengers testified, Yanira’s father-in-law said.
On Wednesday, the soldiers who found the drugs were scheduled to testify, but they did not show up, Larry said.
Coronado said the soldiers were not given sufficient notice to leave their posts near Hermosillo and make the 11:30 a.m. hearing.
The Maldonados have been married for a year and have seven children from previous marriages. They are active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and met at church.
A small sedan carrying Yanira Maldonado and her family members could be seen crossing through the Nogales port of entry at 12:20 a.m. Friday morning.
Family members said a surveillance video shown during a court hearing Thursday helped prove that Yanira Maldonado was not trying to smuggle bundles of marijuana as had been alleged by Mexican federal authorities last week.
News of Maldonado’s release late Thursday drew reaction from Arizona politicians who have taken an interest in her plight, including members of the state’s congressional delegation.
U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., who has been assisting the family, confirmed on Twitter that she was being set free. He tweeted at 10:28 p.m.: “Great news. Just had it confirmed by Consul General. Yanira Maldonado has been released.”
Rep. Matt Salmon, R-Mesa, also released a statement saying he was thrilled that Maldonado’s release, which her family began to anticipate Thursday afternoon, was finally a reality.
“I received encouraging reports from her husband Gary earlier today that her release looked promising and was constantly assured in my conversations with U.S. and Mexican officials that this situation would be resolved fairly and quickly,” Salmon wrote. “I am heartened that this was the case and Mrs. Maldonado is now coming home where she belongs.”
Family spokesman Brandon Klippel told the media about 10 p.m. that Maldonado was being freed from the jail in Nogales, Sonora, where she had been held since May 22. Media saw her leave the jail just after 11 p.m. into the waiting arms of her husband and other family members.
Klippel, brother-in-law of Yanira Maldonado’s husband, Gary, said she would immediately cross the border into the United States.
Her husband, Gary, said at a news conference earlier Thursday that the family was optimistic Maldonado, 42, would be released after surveillance video showed her boarding a bus in Mexico on her way back to Arizona carrying two blankets, two water bottles and her purse, but no drugs. She had been arrested after soldiers found drugs under her seat on the bus.
“She was in a good mood because she feels she is going to get out,” he said.
His father, Larry Maldonado, said he was among a room full of people allowed to watch the 20-minute surveillance video before it was turned over to the judge, who later decided to dismiss the drug-smuggling case. Her attorney subpoenaed the bus company to obtain the tape.
Had she been found guilty, she could have faced 10 years in prison in Mexico, Larry said.
Yanira’s arrest drew international attention after family members began publicizing the case on social media. They insisted she was not guilty and said she was the victim of a nightmarish mistake that turned the lives of her and her husband upside down.
Flake and U.S. Rep. Matt Salmon, R-Ariz., have been in contact with family members as well as with U.S. State Department officials and officials from the Mexican Embassy.
On Thursday, Mexican officials told The Arizona Republic that Yanira was detained because Mexican soldiers found 12.3 pounds of marijuana hidden under her seat and an empty seat near her while she was traveling on a commercial passenger bus with her husband.
The couple were sitting together, with Gary in the aisle seat and Yanira in the window seat, said Larry, who added that there were empty seats around them.
“As a matter of fact, she was sitting over the drugs. So, because of that, she was arrested as a suspect of drug trafficking,” said Denise Coronado, a spokeswoman for the regional office of Mexico’s Secretariat of National Defense in Sonora. Coronado said the bus driver was also arrested, which is standard protocol.
Mexican soldiers found the drugs after the bus was stopped at 8 a.m. May 22 for a routine inspection near Querobabi in the state of Sonora, Coronado said. Querobabi is about 60 miles north of Hermosillo on the highway between Hermosillo and Nogales.
The case was then turned over to federal prosecutors, who are responsible for investigating whether the drugs belonged to Yanira, Coronado said.
Coronado said soldiers have found marijuana hidden on commercial passenger buses in the past, but “it is not common.”
Patricia Monroy, a spokeswoman for the Mexican Attorney General’s Office in Sonora, and Lydia Antonio de la Garza, a spokeswoman for the Mexican Embassy, declined to answer questions about the case.
Yanira and Gary, 41, were returning to the Valley after attending a funeral for Yanira’s aunt near Los Mochis in Sinaloa, the Mexican state south of Sonora, when the bus passed through the military checkpoint, Larry said.
Family members presented testimony and evidence to try to prove Yanira was not guilty, he said. Five witnesses testified in court on her behalf on Tuesday, including her husband, Larry said. Two relatives who drove Yanira and Gary to the bus station and two bus passengers testified, Yanira’s father-in-law said.
On Wednesday, the soldiers who found the drugs were scheduled to testify, but they did not show up, Larry said.
Coronado said the soldiers were not given sufficient notice to leave their posts near Hermosillo and make the 11:30 a.m. hearing.
The Maldonados have been married for a year and have seven children from previous marriages. They are active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and met at church.