This archive report was first published on 2 January 2020.
Andrew Kimmel's Wild Ride in Mexico ¶
Andrew Kimmel, the founder of AuraNexus Media and former Head of Live Video at BuzzFeed News, had a night to remember in Mexico. Or rather, a night he'd rather forget.
On a Wednesday evening, Kimmel went out for dinner and drinks, unaware that this would be the start of a nightmare. He was presented with a bill for over $300 (Ksh. 30,000) at the last bar of the evening, which he couldn't pay due to his bank flagging the transaction as fraud protection.
As the altercation escalated, Kimmel ended up in a Mexican police cell. He claimed that the officers were often in cahoots with bar managers to swindle tourists. Kimmel's cellmate was a tourist from the U.K. who had been arrested over a bar fight.
Hours later, the police officers woke Kimmel up with some unbelievable news: someone had posted his bail. He was given his belongings and shoved outside, where a woman from Kenya was waiting for him.
The mystery Kenyan woman, Megan, revealed that she had also been arrested after an Uber driver claimed that she did not pay for the trip. Like Kimmel, she also had a flight scheduled for the next day, but she was still in the police cell.
After being bailed out, Kimmel and Megan left for the airport, but they arrived too late for his flight. To make matters worse, Kimmel had lost his passport and would not be allowed to board the flight to Los Angeles without one.
He eventually managed to convince the airline agent to help him after showing his I.D. and a picture of his passport. She arranged for him to get on to the last flight out of Mexico, but he needed to buy a new immigration form for $35 (Ksh. 3,500).
With the help of Megan, Kimmel was able to make the last flight out, but not before they shared a romantic moment. He later revealed that he got in touch with Megan after he finally got back to Los Angeles and refunded her the bail money.
As news of the story spread, Kenyans on Twitter engaged Kimmel, seeking to know the identity of the mystery Kenyan woman. He only revealed her first name: Megan.
