Producer questioned in wife's death returns to US

[May 24, 2010]  LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The lawyer for a former "Survivor" producer wanted for questioning in Mexico about his wife's death confirmed that Bruce Beresford-Redman had returned to California, leaving unclear how the investigation will proceed with a key figure out of the country.

Attorney Richard Hirsch said in a statement Sunday that Beresford-Redman had returned to Los Angeles County "to be with his children and attend to family and personal matters."

Hirsch said Beresford-Redman, who has not been charged with a crime, had no legal obligation to remain in Mexico while authorities investigate the death of his wife, Monica, whose body was found in a sewer at the Moon Palace Resort in Cancun in April.

"He is devastated by the loss of his wife, best friend and the mother of his children," Hirsch said.

Police in Mexico had described Beresford-Redman as a suspect. Officials previously said he was barred from leaving the country and confiscated his passport.

However, Francisco Alor, the attorney general for Quintana Roo state, where Cancun is located, said Sunday there was no court order barring Beresford-Redman from leaving Mexico.

"It's a migratory restriction," Alor said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.

The family of the victim, Monica Beresford-Redman, strongly criticized Mexican investigators earlier this month, saying it had taken too long to make an arrest.

Beresford-Redman reported his wife missing two days before her body was found, prosecutors have said. He told police he last saw her when she left the exclusive resort to go shopping and never returned, according to investigators.

Investigators have said the victim's body showed signs of asphyxiation and evidence of a heavy blow to the right temple.

Alor said he has received no notification that the television producer has left Mexico, and the investigation into his wife's death would continue. Investigators have received the results of new forensic results and were preparing to turn over the evidence to a judge, he said.

"The judge will decide whether to issue an arrest order against whoever is responsible," Alor said. "And we would execute that and locate whoever is responsible."

Quintana Roo deputy attorney general Rodolfo Garcia said Friday that investigators had tried twice to summon the television producer for questioning but could not locate him.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. citizens entering the United States by air must show a passport. However, citizens entering by land and or sea can show several other types of documents, including an enhanced driver's license.

Beresford-Redman has retained legal representation in both countries, Hirsch said Sunday in the statement.

[Associated Press; By CHRISTOPHER WEBER]

Associated Press writer Gabriel Alcocer in Cancun, Mexico, contributed to this report.

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