Melbourne woman trapped in Mexican hell
A 30-year-old Melbourne woman has reportedly been arrested and forced into squalid living conditions at a detention centre in Mexico on suspicion she entered the country illegally.
Kylie Bretag was arrested on Monday 20 October at a checkpoint in Tenosique after authorities boarded a bus to check passports, says her friend Natalie Wayt.
Wayt, who has started social media campaign to raise awareness of her friend's innocence, says Bretag is caught in a web of confusion after following advice posted on TripAdvisor.
The 27-year-old told NewsCorp that Bretag decided to heed advice suggesting it was cheaper to cross the border into Mexico from California and then fly to Guadalajara, where she would move to meet Wayt in Cancun.
Bretag was arrested after border officials failed to stamp her passport before federal authorities later boarded the bus, says Wayt.
“She’s very scared," Wayt told NewsCorp.
"She doesn’t speak any Spanish at all, she doesn’t know what’s going on, they’re not telling her anything,”
“She was just trying to follow travel advice and save a few bucks. She has done her time — now she just wants to go home.”
NewsCorp reports that Australian and Mexican authorities are working to resolve the issue but no official statement has been provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
