Mexico Supreme Court orders release of French woman sentenced to 60 years for kidnapping
MEXICO CITY - A Mexican Supreme Court panel has voted to release Florence Cassez, a Frenchwoman who says she was unjustly sentenced to 60 years in prison for kidnapping.
Cassez has become a cause celebre in France, and irregularities in her case strained bilateral relations.
The five-justice panel voted 3-2 to order Cassez released because of procedural and rights violations during her arrest.
Cassez was arrested in 2005 and convicted of helping her Mexican then-boyfriend run a kidnap gang.
Mexican police acknowledged they staged a televised raid to rescue the hostages and detain Cassez.
She said she had lived at the raided ranch, but said she did not know the victims were being held there.
