Brenda Martin

Brenda Kim Martin is a Canadian citizen from Trenton, Ontario, whose arrest and conviction in Mexico was subject of much publicity in Canada. Martin began living in Mexico in 1998, working in the culinary industry, allegedly without a visa. In 2006, she was arrested on fraud charges related to a former employer, Alyn Waage. She remained in custody awaiting disposition of her case for two years. The trial and subsequent decision were pushed forward by intervention of the Canadian government and public. Throughout the proceedings, she maintained that she was innocent of the charges and was not implicated by the ring leader, Alyn Waage, who is incarcerated for the fraud in the USA.

She was found guilty based on evidence suggesting she knowingly accepted illicit funds from her former boss, Alyn Waage, with whom she had a close relationship. She was sentenced to five years in jail without parole and received a fine. After being transferred to Canada, she was granted full parole.