U.S. Marine held in Mexican prison on weapons charge

(CNN) — For more than a month, a U.S. Marine and Afghanistan war veteran has been held in a Tijuana, Mexico, prison, fighting for his release after being charged with a crime he says he did not commit.

Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi said he accidentally crossed into Mexico around 10 p.m. on March 31 with three personal firearms while on his way to meet friends in San Ysidro, California.

Tahmooressi, 25, had recently moved to the area to get treatment for his post-traumatic stress disorder and was “essentially living out of his truck,” his mother, Jill, told CNN.

He is currently being held in the La Mesa penitentiary in Tijuana on a weapons charge and awaits a May 28 court date, according to the Mexican attorney general’s office.

“I accidentally drove into Mexico with 3 guns … a rifle (AR-15), a .45 cal pistol and a 12 gauge pump shotgun with no intensions (sic) on being in Mexico or being involved in any criminal activities,” Tahmooressi wrote in a statement of innocence to U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter. “I have rights to all 3 weapons. They are under my name … Please help me.”