Where is Florence Cassez Today? – “A Kidnapping Scandal: The Florence Cassez Affair,” a brand-new, intensely compelling documentary series, is going to investigate and capture the remarkable case of Florence Cassez. The documentary series will premiere on Thursday, August 25, 2022, only on the well-known streaming service Netflix.
The famous Jorge Volpi novel Una Novela Criminal, or A Criminal Novel, was the inspiration for the docuseries, directed by Gerardo Naranjo and written by Alejandro Gerber Bicecci.
The extraordinary and mind-bending true story began in 2005. The Zodiacs or Los Zodiacos kidnapping ring was then accused of operating by a 31-year-old French woman named Cassez, who was later detained and found guilty of the crime by Mexican police.
Since Netflix announced the gruesome documentary series, the audience has been interested in learning more about the Cassez case.
Before this Thursday’s premiere of A Kidnapping Scandal: The Florence Cassez Affair on Netflix, let’s get right to it and learn some critical details about the tense 2005 case. If you want to learn more about Florence Cassez’s case and her current whereabouts, we have details for you.
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Who Is Florence Cassez?
Florence Marie Louise Cassez Crépin, who was born on November 17, 1974, was found guilty in Mexico of being a member of the kidnapping group Los Zodacos (The Zodiacs). For her involvement in organised crime, kidnapping, and illegal gun ownership, she was given a 60-year term. The sentencing and the prospect of her extradition to her native nation sparked diplomatic tensions between France and Mexico. Cassez rejects all accusations.
The Mexican Supreme Court of Justice ordered Cassez’s immediate release on January 23, 2013, as a result of police imitating her arrest the day following her actual arrest for the purpose of filming. Her return to France took place on January 24, 2013.
Cassez officially entered Mexico in 2003 as a tourist with the intention of living and working with her brother and his Mexican wife. The following year, she was introduced to Israel Vallarta by her brother. The pair’s rocky relationship turned off her friends since they could see he was in danger. In the summer of 2005, she returned to France, but when Vallarta got a hold of her, she returned to Mexico to live at his ranch. Cassez looked for an apartment close to her new job after securing employment at a hotel.
On December 8, 2005, while Cassez was travelling with Vallarta on the Mexico City-Cuernavaca Highway, she was arrested. They had been cohabiting, and they were frequently spotted together. On December 9, 2005, she was held overnight before being transferred to Vallarta’s home in the early morning hours. The Mexican Federal Police arranged a bogus arrest that TV crews from the Mexican networks Televisa and TV Azteca covered live by Loret de Mola after receiving a tip from multiple journalists. Four people, including Cassez, were detained, while three kidnapped victims were released.
Then, Cassez was depicted as a member of the abduction group “Los Zodacos,” something she has consistently denied. The leader of the abduction gang, Vallarta, also claimed that Cassez was unrelated to his kidnapping activities. Between those who think she is “undoubtedly guilty” and others who think the Felipe Calderón administration was using her as a scapegoat, there is a difference in popular opinion in Mexico. There was also a discussion about whether judges should favour the legal process over justice in order to release Cassez, as Nicolas Sarkozy had urged. The biggest issue was with the legal process of how to arrest someone.
A few weeks later, Cassez called Genaro Garca Luna, the head of the Mexican Federal Police, and told him the truth about the fake arrest during a live television program. In the following weeks, Attorney General of Mexico Daniel Cabeza de Vaca was compelled to acknowledge that the arrest depicted on television was manufactured. He also attempted to place the blame on the media, saying they had asked for it. One journalist, Pablo Reinah, was consequently let go by his TV network. Reinah brought a slander claim. The Mexican judiciary determined in March 2007 that Reinah was unaware that Cassez and Vallarta were being falsely arrested.
The federal officers who detained Cassez have been the subject of a formal investigation by the Mexican police since August 2006. Three Supreme Court of Mexico Ministers concluded on March 21, 2012, that Florence Cassez’s arrest resulted in several violations of her fundamental rights. Later in the same week, the Procuradura General de la Repblica announced that it would launch an investigation to find individuals accountable for violating her fundamental rights and staging the arrest.
Where is Florence Cassez Now?
Cassez was given a 96-year prison sentence on April 25, 2008. The court lowered her sentence to 76 years in prison on March 2, 2009. The sentence was further lowered to 60 years in prison that same month.
The conviction of Cassez sparked a fierce international dispute between France and Mexico.
Florence allegedly spent time in Mexico’s Tepepan prison. Her attorneys urged that she be released, arguing that her conviction was illegal and unfair.
The Mexican Supreme Court finally granted the petition for her freedom in January 2013, over eight years after her detention. She was then granted her freedom and permitted to return to France.
She spoke to the media after being freed and said: “My release is a great victory for Mexicans.”
Don’t miss the Netflix premiere of ‘A Kidnapping Scandal: The Florence Cassez Affair’ on Thursday, August 25, 2022.
