Karime Macías will be extradited from London to Mexico

The legal dispute surrounding the extradition of the former first lady of Veracruz, Karime Macías, has reached a dead end. This Thursday, the Westminster Magistrates Court, in England, where she has lived since 2017, confirmed the legality of the delivery of Javier Duarte‘s ex-wife to Mexico.

On January 11, Macías —accused of the alleged diversion of more than 100 million pesos to shell companies during her time as president of DIF Veracruz— filed a final appeal in which she alleged that her extradition process was carried out unconstitutionally. The response to this last attempt to prove her innocence occurred this Thursday at 2:00 p.m. in the United Kingdom (GMT).

According to the laws, the former first lady of Veracruz has 30 days for the court to review her legal situation.

In the last five years, Macías’ lawyers had tried resources and arguments to delay the process, such as the payment of 150,000 pounds as bail. His defender, Marco Antonio del Toro Carazo,  argued on more than one occasion that if his client is handed over to Mexico she would be exposed to torture.

In the United Kingdom, the Mexican woman was free from her judicial process,  however, she was wearing a  location bracelet on her ankle, as a measure to prevent escape.

In England, Macías lives in one of the most exclusive neighborhoods. According to information revealed by the Veracruz government, the woman and her children reside on Belgrave Street, located just one kilometer from the mansion of Queen Elizabeth.

The former Veracruz president,  Miguel Ángel Yunes, then showed the former first lady of the state while he was withdrawing money from ATMs, walking through the streets of London, leaving yoga classes, and going to look for his children.

According to the Mexican authorities, Karime Macías is a key player in the corruption plot in Javier Duarte‘s six-year term .

The former state president was arrested in April 2017 in Guatemala. A day later, Macías flew from Colombia to London with his three children, his sister, and his mother.

Duarte has defended his ex-wife from the crimes attributed to him, pointing out that everything would be an invention of Miguel Ángel Yunes. In addition to the complaints about the diversion of money, Macías adds another accusation. In 2018, the Ministry of Finance denounced the woman for alleged tax fraud of 2 million pesos.

Upon arrival in Mexico, Karime Macías is expected to be admitted to the Morelos Federal Center for Social Readaptation for Women.

In the country, determinations have already been made against Macías, in January the bank accounts of the ex-wife of Javier Duarte were frozen at the request of the Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF).

The notice warned that the woman could not use her accounts until the day of her extradition to Mexico.