California woman kidnapped while walking dog in Mexico is released by captors: FBI

A California woman who was kidnapped while walking her dog in Mexico last year has been released and is reuniting with her family in the U.S., the FBI says. 

Monica de Leon Barba’s safe return comes as an investigation into the identity of her captors remains ongoing, and no arrests have been made, according to the FBI’s San Francisco Division. The bureau previously offered a reward of up to $40,000 for information leading to the San Mateo woman’s whereabouts. 

“The FBI is pleased to announce that Monica De Leon Barba is safe and en route to the United States, where she will be reunited with her family and dog after spending eight months in captivity,” the division said in a statement. 

The FBI said Monica was “kidnapped in Tepatitlan, Jalisco, Mexico, while walking home from work with her dog on November 29, 2022.” 

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“For the past eight months, FBI personnel in California and Mexico have worked tirelessly with the family and with partners here and in Mexico,” added Special Agent In Charge Robert Tripp of the FBI San Francisco Field Office. “Our relief and joy at the safe return of Monica is profound. The FBI investigation is far from over, but we can now work this case knowing an innocent victim is reunited with her family.” 

In April this year, the FBI released two videos from her kidnapping. 

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One of the videos, the FBI said, “depicts the kidnappers and their vehicles during the kidnapping.”

“Monica was confronted by several suspects and forced into a gray Volkswagen Jetta. The suspects then drive away in three different vehicles, including the Jetta,” according to the FBI. “Monica’s dog is shown in the video loose in the street. Her dog was later safely located and recovered by a family member.” 

 

The suspects were described at the time as four males and a presumed driver of a white Chevrolet Suburban, another one of the vehicles authorities believe was used in the kidnapping. 

“The U.S. Department of State and our embassies and consulates abroad have no greater responsibility than the protection of U.S. citizens overseas,” a State Department spokesperson previously told Fox News Digital in connection with De Leon’s disappearance. “The welfare and safety of U.S. citizens abroad is one of the highest priorities of the Department of State.”  

Fox News’ Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.