The 63-year-old American citizen who the FBI says was “kidnapped from her residence” in Mexico is a mother of seven who was seen being forced into a white van, a report says.
Zonia Lopez, who is the daughter of Maria del Carmen Lopez, according to KABC, has revealed the details as the FBI offers a $20,000 reward for information leading to Maria’s whereabouts.
Investigators from the FBI’s Los Angeles office say Maria del Carmen Lopez has connections to Southern California and was last seen at her home in Pueblo Nuevo in the Mexican state of Colima on Feb. 9.
“There was an exchange of words. He refused to get in the van,” Zonia Lopez told KABC, describing how witnesses reported seeing a white vehicle show up on her property.
US CITIZEN ‘KIDNAPPED FROM HER RESIDENCE’ IN MEXICO, FBI SAYS
Maria del Carmen Lopez is a U.S. citizen who was abducted from her residence in Pueblo Nuevo, Colima, Mexico on February 9, 2023. (FBI)
“There was another individual who got out of the van and helped those two carry her in and they left,” he added.
Since then, Zonia Lopez said she and her family “started calling her to see if she would answer her phone or her messenger and we haven’t heard from her.”
He also told station detectives that the disappearance could be part of a staged kidnapping and that drug cartels are not involved.
The claims cannot be independently verified. Fox News Digital has reached out to the FBI’s Los Angeles office for comment.
MEDICAL TOURISM BOMBS IN MEXICO WHILE AMERICANS RISK THEIR LIVES FOR SURGERY
The Los Angeles office of the FBI says Maria del Carmen Lopez has ties to Southern California. (FBI)
Lopez’s disappearance follows a warning from the US State Department last October to Americans to stay away from the Mexican state of Colima.
“Do not travel because of crimes and kidnappings,” the State Department said of the region. “Violent crime and gang activity are widespread. Most of the homicides are targeted killings against members of criminal organizations. Gunfights between criminal gangs have injured or killed bystanders. US citizens and legal permanent residents have been victimized of kidnappings”.
Maria del Carmen Lopez is described by the FBI as approximately 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighing 160 pounds, with blonde hair and brown eyes. Her eyeliner, they added, is “permanent/tattooed.”
The announcement of the kidnapping of Maria del Carmen Lopez comes after their deaths. (REUTERS/Daniel Becerril)
“The FBI is offering a reward of up to $20,000 USD for information leading to the physical whereabouts of Maria del Carmen Lopez,” the FBI’s Los Angeles office said.
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Zonia Lopez told KABC that she is hopeful Maria will be found.
“We know how strong she is and that she’s pulling, thinking about the seven of us and if we’re pulling that energy out of her and keeping it; we know we’re going to have our mother,” she said.
