Missing girls returned from Mexico
Reporter: Craig Smith
TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - We have some good news tonight: two other girls, one two years old, the other only one, found safe in Mexico.
One mother is in jail, while another is seeing her daughter for the first time since November.
This is a twisted tale that left two parents accused of whisking their children across the border, leaving two others likely wondering if they'd ever see their children again.
People in Law Enforcement say they work hard to keep everyone safe, but when children are in trouble, they kick into overdrive.
"Anytime you have a case that involved children that tends to get us working harder because we don't want to see children victimized or placed in precarious situations," says Deputy U.S. Marshal Daniel Leyva.
This was an international case of children missing.
Caroline Oddo had been missing since November, Estella Lovemore since late January. Investigators say Oddo's father Luis Palacio broke a custody order and took his daughter Caroline to Mexico, and that Danielle Lovemore broke a custody order on her child Estella and took her to rendezvous with Palacio.
U.S. Marshals say when their work told them the kids were south of the border, international co-operation kicked in.
KGUN 9 Reporter Craig Smith asked Deputy Marshal Leyva: "So you have the bridges to the Mexican Authorities and then they take it from there once you can narrow down where they are?"
Leyva: "Exactly, exactly. We'll get the information. We'll develop it as much as we can here in the United States. Once information leads us to Mexico then our Mexican investigative liaisons who are deputy US Marshals send the information to Mexico. They then work with the officials in Mexico to help locate and apprehend these individuals."
That led to what happened Friday, as Anna Oddo walked into the CPS office in Nogales to wait for authorities to bring her daughter home.
While Danielle Lovemore is already in the Pima County Jail, Luis Palacio is still in Mexico. Because he's a Mexican citizen there may be extradition issues in his case.
And that extradition issue is an example of how complicated these cases can be.
And the Marshal's Service is seeing more of them. The Marshall's Service says they've jumped about 70 percent in the past four years, probably because there are more international couples.
This site uses Facebook comments to make it easier for you to contribute. If you see a comment you would like to flag for spam or abuse, click the "x" in the upper right of it. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use.