Mexican television host Inés Gómez Mont, 43, was arrested Friday in Miami, Florida, by U.S. authorities. She has been wanted by Mexican authorities for five years in connection with an alleged $146 million tax fraud scheme. Gómez Mont denies any wrongdoing.
Méxican prosecutors accuse the former reporter of involvement in organized crime, money laundering, operations with funds of illicit origin, and tax fraud. Authorities allege that Gómez Mont and her husband, lawyer Víctor Manuel Álvarez Puga, used a network of shell companies to divert nearly $146 million from public funds. If convicted, both could face sentences of 20 to 60 years.
A federal judge in Mexico issued arrest warrants for Gómez Mont and Álvarez Puga in September 2021. The couple left Mexico with their family shortly thereafter. The Mexican Attorney General's Office then requested Interpol issue international arrest warrants, known as red notices, to facilitate their apprehension and extradition.
In September 2023, Interpol controversially lifted the red notices against the couple, a decision criticized by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. However, their domestic arrest warrants remained active. Gómez Mont was detained by U.S. authorities on October 30 in Miami, where she had been living for five years despite the warrant for her arrest in Mexico. She is currently in U.S. custody pending immigration proceedings and formal extradition requests.
Authorities claim Gómez Mont and Álvarez Puga obtained two contracts from the Ministry of Interior in 2016 through a shell company called Inteligencia Cibernética. This company was contracted to provide security systems to seven state jails. However, officials allegedly diverted the funds, and the equipment was never delivered. Inteligencia Cibernética then allegedly used seven other companies to launder the money and create invoices for services that were never rendered between September 2016 and 2017.
Gómez Mont, a mother of six, previously worked as an actress and began her television career in 2002 with TV Azteca. She gained notoriety in 2008 when she proposed to NFL player Tom Brady during Super Bowl media day while wearing a wedding dress. She took to social media in 2021 to assert her innocence, stating she had never stolen money and was not involved in organized crime.
Her husband, known as the 'King of the Invoice Mills,' was reportedly detained in Miami in 2025 by ICE. The couple is currently navigating immigration proceedings and extradition requests from Mexico.