The Mexican president, Claudia Sheinbaum, said her government would send a formal letter of complaint to authorities in the United Kingdom after the wife of a wanted former governor was granted asylum in Britain for allegedly stealing 4.8 million pounds of public money.
Karim Macias, the ex-wife of jailed ex-Veracruz governor Javier Duarte, is seeking extradition to Mexico for allegedly defrauding millions from the state welfare office, but has reportedly spent the past few years in London.
“How can a woman accused of fraud and corruption be granted asylum?” Sheinbaum asked. “Today we are sending a letter with this position.”
Neither the British Embassy nor Macias’ lawyer responded to a request for comment. The Home Office said it does not comment on individual cases. Macias’ asylum in the UK was first reported by Mexican news agency N+.
Macías was first lady of Veracruz from December 2010 to October 2016, after her husband resigned amid organized crime and embezzlement allegations. He was accused of embezzling billions of pounds from the state coffers.
At the time, the crimes committed by Duarte and Macias reflected the graft that had plagued Mexico for years and was especially rampant under then-President Enrique Peña Nieto’s government. Mexico is one of the most corrupt countries in the world, recently ranked 141 out of 182 countries by Transparency International.
After his resignation, Duarte fled the country, but was arrested six months later in Guatemala. He served time in prison in Mexico on charges of money laundering and criminal conspiracy. Mexican prosecutors recently requested an extension of his sentence for allegedly embezzling £215,000 from a state fund meant to support children and the elderly.
While serving as first lady, Macias reportedly enjoyed the use of a 15-acre, $9.7 million ranch called El Faunito, where the walls are adorned with paintings by Latin American masters such as Rufino Tamayo and Fernando Botero.
She also headed the State Welfare Office, where she is accused of awarding contracts worth millions of pounds to shell companies. Authorities later found a warehouse full of belongings belonging to the couple, including Macias’ notebooks.
On Tuesday, Sheinbaum displayed a page from one of those notebooks, where Macias wrote “I deserve abundance” over and over again.
Macias disappeared shortly after her husband was captured. In 2018, a Mexican judge issued an arrest warrant against Macias, accusing her of embezzlement. Days later, Duarte’s successor, Miguel Angel Yunes, presented the results of months of surveillance efforts, accusing her of living a life of luxury in London.
According to Younes’ research, Macias had a home in Belgravia, one of London’s wealthiest neighborhoods, less than a mile from Buckingham Palace. Macias reportedly spends at least £60,000 a month and attends a “face gym” to strengthen her facial muscles.
On the day the findings were released, Interpol issued a red notice for Macias’ arrest, but she does not currently appear on the agency’s wanted list.
Macias was detained by British authorities in October 2019, but released on bail after paying £150,000 to face extradition charges. She also agreed to wear an ankle monitor.
In 2022, Westminster Magistrates’ Court ruled in favor of extraditing her to Mexico, but Macias’ legal team filed several appeals to halt the process, alleging the Mexican Foreign Ministry did not share the fact with British authorities, according to local news reports.
Mecias also filed an asylum petition with the British government, alleging political persecution by the Mexican government. According to news reports, the disgraced first lady sought asylum in the UK last year.
Also condemning the British government’s verdict, President Sheinbaum also questioned how Macias could live in one of the world’s most expensive cities.
“For this person who has been living in the UK for a while, who knows where they got the money from? Having children there, living in a special place, where did they get it from?”
