Ethan Couch: ‘Affluenza’ Teen Captured In Mexico Resort Town
“Affluenza” teen Ethan Couch was captured yesterday evening at around 6 p.m. in Mexico, in a Pacific Coast resort town with his mother. The fugitive dyed his hair from blonde to a dark brown color, apparently in an attempt to avoid detection by law enforcement.
New York Daily News reports that Couch, 18, and his mother Tonya Couch, 48, were found in the resort town Puerto Vallarta on the coast of Mexico, ending an almost month-long manhunt. Mom and son allegedly drove over 1,200 miles from Tarrant County, Texas, to the the resort town, located 600 miles west of the United States border.
A Tarrant County confirmed shortly after 6 p.m. that Ethan was detained and taken into custody in Mexico.
Jalisco State Prosecutor's office has released an image of #EthanCouch – note his hair is now black. pic.twitter.com/sCY33zomYS
— Joshua Hoyos (@JoshuaHoyos) December 29, 2015
Couch disappeared earlier this month after missing his required probation meeting. His probation stems from a 2013 drunk driving incident in which he killed four people and injured several others on an isolated road in the Fort Worth area.
After being found guilty of four counts of intoxication manslaughter, prosecutors argued that the reckless teen should serve 20 years behind bars. Yet, Judge Jean Hudson Boyd opted to give Couch probation and a required treatment program with the stipulation that he cannot drink alcohol, take any illegal drugs, or operate a vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs during his sentence.
His inpatient treatment began in 2014 at the at the North Texas State Hospital in Vernon, Texas. Couch’s time spent at the treatment center is unspecified.
Earlier this month, a video surfaced online of someone who appeared to be Couch, participating in a game of beer pong with friends. Authorities believe that the video is the reason he fled the country, in an attempt to avoid incarceration for violating his probation.
Couch’s blood alcohol level was nearly three times the legal limit during the 2013 incident, which caused him to lose control of his father’s truck and plow into a stranded motorist, Breanna Mitchell, 24, who was on the side of the road with her vehicle.
Three samaritans who stopped to help Mitchell were also killed in the incident. Numerous others were injured, including a young boy, Lucas McConnell, who testified against Couch during his trial.
According to District Attorney Sharen Wilson, it was never determined for sure that it was truly Couch in the video, although the attorney stated it “certainly looks like him.” The video didn’t violate his probation, as it needed more investigation. Regardless, the teen failing to show up for his probation meeting and leaving the county is a direct violation whether it was truly him in the video or not.
Last week, Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson that he believed Couch and his mother fled the country since the contents of their shared home was completely empty, aside from a arcade machine. Couch’s father, who has been working with the police, stated that both mother and son’s passports were also missing. Anderson reflected back on the events that led up to Couch’s disappearance and said he knew something like this would happen, and given that the family is wealthy, it made it easier for them to get away.
“They have the money. They have the ability to disappear, and I’m fearing that they have gone a long way and may even be out of the country.”
Ethan Couch is expected to soon be turned over to the U.S. Marshals Service.
[Photo Courtesy of Jalisco State Prosecutor’s Office]
