‘Affluenza’ Teen Ethan Couch Headed Back to Texas
(ABC News) — Ethan Couch is headed back to Texas, according to Mexican immigration officials.
The 18-year-old, who was apprehended in Mexico one month ago, is being transported on a commercial flight headed to Dallas, Texas, “where he will be received by United States authorities since he is facing various charges there,” Mexico’s National Institute of Immigration said in a statement.
Tarrant County court sources told ABC News that Ethan Couch will likely have a “very brief” detention hearing either Friday or Monday.
The Texan teen, who was put on probation after killing four people in a drunk driving accident in 2013, and his mother Tonya Couch were the subjects of an international manhunt after he missed a mandatory check-in as part of his probation.
Ethan and Tonya Couch were picked up in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, on Dec. 28 and were transferred to immigration authorities.
He was allowed to remain in Mexico after being granted a stay in his deportation case.
A Mexican immigration official confirmed to ABC News that Ethan has been held at a migrant detention center in the Iztapalapa borough of Mexico City for the past several weeks.
Tonya Couch appeared in a court in Fort Worth, Texas, on Jan. 8 and faces a felony charge of hindering the apprehension of a fugitive.
During Ethan’s sentencing in the drunken-driving trial, a psychologist hired by the defense testified that the teen was a product of “affluenza” — a term he used to describe Ethan’s irresponsible lifestyle associated with his affluent upbringing. Ethan had a blood alcohol level three times the legal limit on the night of the crash.
