Michigan couple arrested in Mexico over payment dispute freed, US special envoy says

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A Michigan couple, Christy and Paul Akeo, who were arrested last month in Cancun, Mexico, over a payments dispute with a resort company, have been freed and were on a plane home, U.S. special envoy Adam Boehler told Reuters on Thursday.

“They are in the plane right now” on a chartered flight to Michigan, Boehler said. They were accompanied by Michigan Republican Representative Tom Barrett.

Prosecutors in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo accused the the couple of having canceled 13 credit card payments to a hotel chain worth around $116,500 in 2022 which they said constituted fraud, CNN has reported.

The couple denied the allegations, saying that their credit card company had refunded the amount when the resort firm, The Palace Company, had failed to provide services that were promised, according to CNN.

The Akeos had been held in a Mexican prison since their March 4 arrest.

Boehler said he helped spur negotiations that led to their release after President Donald Trump alerted him to the couple’s plight last week.

The release came after The Palace Company and the Akeos agreed to resolve the dispute.

Under the terms of the agreement, $116,587.84 will be donated to a nonprofit organization in Mexico benefiting orphan children.

“Each party regrets that this incident occurred,” a joint statement from the Akeos and The Palace Company said.

(Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)