The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is seeking an American woman thought to have been kidnapped from her home in Mexico in February.
Federal authorities are seeking the public’s help in locating Maria del Carmen Lopez, 63, who is believed to have been kidnapped from her home in Pueblo Nuevo, Colima, Mexico, on Feb. 9. Though she resides in Mexico, Lopez is an American citizen, according to a press release from the FBI Los Angeles field office.
FBI offers $20K reward in case of missing 63-year-old American woman kidnapped from Mexico home https://t.co/odLhyOMDy8
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) March 17, 2023
The U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory for the Mexican state of Colima in October 2022 due to high incidents of crime and kidnapping.
“Violent crime and gang activity are widespread. Most homicides are targeted assassinations against members of criminal organizations. Shooting incidents between criminal groups have injured or killed bystanders. U.S. citizens and [Lawful Permanent Residents] (LPR) have been victims of kidnapping,” the advisory read. (RELATED: Cartel Apologizes For Kidnapping And Killing Americans, Turns Over Its Own Members For ‘Lack Of Discipline’: REPORT)
Mexico’s Citizens’ Council for Public Safety and Criminal Justice (CCSPJP) recently ranked the western city of Colima, the capital of the aforementioned state, as the most deadly in the world in its 2022 ranking of the world’s most violent cities, Anadolu Agency News reported.
According to data obtained by the CCSPJP, Colima saw 181.94 homicides for every 100,000 residents in 2022, the outlet stated.
Lopez is described as an Hispanic female with blonde hair and brown eyes who stands 5’2″ tall, weighs 160 pounds and has eyeliner that is permanently tattooed, the release from the FBI Los Angeles field office stated.
Officials are offering a reward of $20,000 in exchange for information leading to her whereabouts.
