Mother of imprisoned US trucker says newspaper reports of son’s release ‘absolutely not true’

(Nov. 2012 story)

An article published in Saturday’s edition of El Diario de El Paso reports the American truck driver imprisoned in Veracruz, Mex., is back home in Dallas.

The mother of Dallas trucker Jabin Bogan, 27, says the article and other news reports originating from unnamed Mexican sources are untrue and cause for

concern.

“He is not home,” Aletha Smith, the truck driver’s mother said. “I’m worried, now. I don’t know why they would be saying this.”

The article published by El Diario de El Paso does not report the source of the information on an alleged release.

The newspaper did not return phone calls regarding the validity of the article.

Bogan was arrested by Mexican customs agents on the Mexican side of the Bridge of the Americas in Cd. Juarez, on April 17, for exclusive-use rifle ammunition trafficking.

The truck driver was delivering a shipment of 268,000 bullets from a manufactory in Tennessee to a firearms store in Phoenix, according to shipping documents and purchase orders.

Bogan said his GPS failed and he took a wrong road while passing through El Paso.

Bogan told Mexican customs agents he was unable to maneuver a U-turn due to heavy truck traffic at the bridge and his rig began heading for the international crossing.

Bogan, the owner of trucking company Demco Express, and supporters all say this was a huge mistake.

Firearms and ammunition are illegal in Mexico, where even possession of a single bullet carries a prison sentence.

El Paso attorney Carlos Spector in conjunction with Mexican defense attorney Emelio De La Rosa were able to secure the release of Bogan, after the payment of a fine equivalent to nearly $1,500.

Bogan’s family and his attorneys say the fine has not been paid and the truck driver has not been released.

Bogan has been held in a maximum-security prison in Veracruz for nearly seven months.

(Nov. 2012 story)