Zahie Téllez of MasterChef Kidnapped on Mexico-Cuernavaca Highway

Zahie Téllez, a judge on MasterChef Celebrity, was kidnapped on Saturday while traveling on the Mexico-Cuernavaca highway with her husband, Alberto Escobar. Authorities confirmed that the couple was rescued after a few hours.

The kidnapping occurred when Zahie and Alberto stopped near the boundaries of Mexico City and Huitzilac, Morelos, to participate in a Zoom interview. During the interview, they were intercepted and taken by force.

Miguel Ángel Urrutia, the Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection of Morelos, stated that the police received a report about the kidnapping during the interview. The authorities quickly initiated an inter-agency operation and tried to contact relatives of the victims.

Using drones and surveillance cameras, the police located Zahie’s vehicle in northern Cuernavaca. They traced the couple to a house in Huitzilac, where they were rescued. One person was arrested at the scene, who was driving the couple’s vehicle. The High Impact Crimes Investigation Division of the local prosecutor’s office will follow up on the case.

Both Zahie and Alberto are in stable health and showed no signs of injury. Zahie Téllez, 50, is a chef from Mazatlán, Sinaloa, with Lebanese-Mexican roots. She has been married to Alberto Escobar for about 20 years, and they have adopted a child.

Zahie is known for her role as a judge on MasterChef Celebrity, alongside chefs Adrián Herrera and Alfonso Cadena Rubio. She has appeared on various television shows and authored a book during the COVID pandemic, sharing her family recipes and stories.