An Arizona family is hoping for help after a road trip to Mexico went awry.
Ira Beavers, along with his wife Francine Nicholson and their three children were headed to Mexico for a family vacation in July when they were stopped at the border in Lukeville.
According to reports, Beavers had a 9mm Glock handgun under his seat, which he accidentally forgot to remove before the trip.
Though that weapon is perfectly legal to own and carry in Arizona, it is illegal in Mexico. He was taken into custody by Mexican authorities, and Friday was sentenced to three years in a Mexican jail.
He is being held in Hermosillo, the capital city of Sonora.
Nicholson was detained for 48 hours and then released.
She called the experience “absolutely terrifying,” and said that neither she nor Beavers had ever been arrested.
Nicholson says the family paid a Mexican attorney to defend Beavers, but that the attorney took their money and did not provide the service.
She said she has hired a new lawyer for the appeals process, and hopes to have her husband home for Thanksgiving. Right now, they are reportedly only allowed to speak on the phone twice per week for 10 minutes at a time.
The State Department gave a vague statement of support for Beavers.
“The U.S. Department of State and our embassies and consulates abroad have no greater responsibility than the protection of U.S. citizens overseas,” it reportedly said. “We generally do not share info with the media about private citizens absent their written consent. Due to privacy considerations, we have no further comment.”
Nicholson is also warning other families to be careful.
“There’s so many of us that go down to Rocky Point every weekend, we spend so much of our money there, it’s a beautiful place but we have to be hyper-vigilant about everything that’s in our vehicles at all times,” she reportedly said.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a contributor at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
