The wife of professional footballer Fabián Castillo has been arrested for her alleged involvement in an elaborate jewellery heist, likened to the plot of Ocean’s Eleven.
Tania Jazmín Ojeda Ávila was taken into custody at Bogotá Airport, Colombia, after arriving from Mexico.
She is the spouse of Castillo, a forward currently playing for Deportivo Cali in Colombia, on loan from Club Tijuana in Mexico.
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The 32-year-old footballer has also played for FC Dallas and Trabzonspor and made three appearances for the Colombian national team in 2015.
Ojeda Ávila, a 27-year-old from Culiacán, Mexico, was apprehended under an Interpol Red Notice and is wanted by Costa Rican authorities for robbery and criminal conspiracy.
She is suspected of being part of a Mexican criminal gang known as “Los Mazos,” accused of carrying out simultaneous armed robberies at two jewellery stores in San José, Costa Rica, on October 31, 2017.
Colombian police reported that between October 23 and 30, 2017, members of Los Mazos flew from Mexico to Costa Rica in small groups, carefully orchestrating their arrival to avoid detection.
The gang targeted two jewellery stores in San José’s Escazú district, acquiring vehicles, blunt weapons, and firearms in preparation for the heist.
On the day of the robbery, members of the group, armed with hammers and guns, stormed the stores in broad daylight.
They threatened employees and customers, smashed display cases, and made off with luxury watches worth over a million dollars.
Ojeda Ávila’s alleged role was to wait in a getaway vehicle and assist in the escape. She is also accused of helping transport and safeguard the stolen jewellery until it could be smuggled out of Costa Rica.
After the heist, the group allegedly dispersed to various countries to evade authorities before eventually regrouping in Mexico.
However, an in-depth investigation in San José led to the arrest of four members of Los Mazos and helped identify others involved, some of whom are located in countries such as Canada, the U.S., Uruguay, and France, according to reports from VKNews24.
Ojeda Ávila is now awaiting extradition to Costa Rica to face charges, with local media comparing the intricate crime to the famous Ocean’s Eleven movie.
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SOURCE: WAG of pro footballer arrested over ‘Ocean’s Eleven-style jewellery heist’
