US Police Officer Jailed in Mexico for Allegedly Violating Federal Law

Metro Nashville Police Department officer Lemandries Hawes, in a photo obtained by The Epoch Times. Metro Nashville Police Department

An officer from the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) is in a Mexican jail for allegedly bringing a gun into the country during a recent trip, according to reports.

Lemandries Hawes declared his personal firearm to the airline and checked it in with his luggage when he flew into Cancun on July 9, in violation of Mexican federal law.

MNPD spokesperson Noelle Yazdani told News Channel 5 Nashville that even though Hawes declared the gun to the airline, “it is considered a federal offense to bring a gun into Mexico.”

Hawes was due to have a hearing in Mexico on Monday and MNPD remain in contact with the officer’s family while he’s held in jail, Yazdani said.

Hawes was hired on Oct. 16, 2021, and graduated from the MNPD Academy in February, according to local media WKRN. Before joining MNPD, Hawes worked with the Memphis Police Department for five years from 2017 to 2021, Fox13 reported.

He is not the first American to be detained in Mexico on gun-related charges.

Embassy Warnings

The U.S. Embassy provides information to U.S. citizens on its website that when they enter a foreign country, they are subject to the laws and regulations of that country, which can differ from what they’re used to in the United States.

“Persons violating Mexican laws, even unknowingly, may be expelled, arrested, or imprisoned,” the U.S. Embassy states on its website.

U.S. citizens who break local laws in Mexico cannot avoid arrest or prosecution and will go through that country’s legal system.

They may be charged, indicted, prosecuted, and possibly convicted and sentenced according to the local laws and regulations. This includes the appeals process.

Similar Case

Glendale resident Francine Nicholson learned this when her husband Ira Beavers was arrested near Sonoyta, past the Lukeville Port of Entry, when Mexican police searched their car and found Beavers’s gun during a family trip, according to Glendale Star.

“We didn’t see the signs going into the border,” Nicholson told the local Arizona outlet, referring to posted signs advising U.S. citizens of Mexico’s no-gun policy. “I’ve been down to Sonoyta since this arrest, and I did see the signs that time.”

Beavers was arrested on July 30, 2021, after police pulled his car over for speeding and discovered the gun. He has been serving a three-year prison term. Nicholson has been trying to secure his release.