Federal Judge Upholds Charges Against Woman in Xibalba Pet Cremation Fraud Case

Chetumal, Quintana Roo — A federal judge has refused to dismiss the criminal charges against Briseidy Koo Dávila, the woman accused of impersonating a veterinarian in the Xibalba pet cremation scandal that defrauded dozens of pet owners last year.

The Sixth District Court in Chetumal ruled that there is sufficient evidence to maintain the indictment and pretrial detention against Koo Dávila, who allegedly posed as a veterinary doctor and thanatology specialist. The court also upheld charges against her partner, Guillermo Alejandro Yah Navarrete, who faces additional fraud allegations.

“There is other evidence that establishes that a fraud was committed and that the people who presented themselves as veterinarians and thanatologists were not, since they did not have those professions,” the federal judge wrote in the ruling.

The case dates to late October 2025, when the couple allegedly deceived hundreds of pet owners by offering cremation services. Instead of returning ashes, victims said they received dirt. One victim testified that they found their pet’s body wrapped in a blue blanket dumped in a vacant lot near the Mega Escultura boulevard.

“A vacant lot near the Mega Escultura boulevard, where they found the blue blanket in which they had wrapped their pet and observed that it was indeed their pet named Frijol, therefore they state that the cremation was not carried out and they were victims of fraud,” the judge noted in evaluating the testimony.

Koo Dávila had sought federal protection after being charged in November 2025. The court’s decision reaffirms the original indictment issued by a Chetumal control judge.