Fugitive Illegal Alien Charged in 2011 Triple Murder

An illegal alien wanted on murder charges in connection with his role in a 2011 triple murder in Arizona has been turned over to U.S authorities so he can stand trial.

The case began in 2011 when Phoenix Police believe that 38-year-old Efrain Olague-Valdez used a handgun to shoot the three men that were in a car with him. It is believed that Olague-Valdez fled to Mexico almost immediately after the triple murder, leading to a five-year manhunt by local authorities and the U.S. Marshals Service. 

The motive of the 2011 triple murder was never specified, however, authorities have revealed that the illegal alien from Mexico was described throughout their investigation as very violent and volatile. Olague-Valdez knew his victims and the reason for him shooting them inside that vehicle still remains a mystery.

Since Olague-Valdez fled into Mexico, Phoenix Police obtained a warrant for his arrest in 2012 and requested the help from the U.S. Marshal’s Service since that agency has jurisdiction nationwide and is able to coordinate the capture of fugitives in other countries. Federal agents were able to track Olague-Valdez to Culiacan, Sinaloa, and contacted their counterparts in Mexico so they could carry out the arrest. Mexican authorities caught up with the fugitive on December 2016 in Culiacan and was taken to Mexico City where he was detained until his extradition to Phoenix.

Olague-Valdez appears to have been previously arrested by Mexican authorities and then released before he could be turned over to U.S. authorities. A 2014 news article from Mexico’s Debate revealed that Mexican authorities arrested  Olague Valdez in the town of La Lagunita in the municipality of Guasave, Sinaloa. At the time of his arrest, authorities found he had a .357 caliber pistol and booked him on charges unrelated to the triple murder in Arizona. He was later discovered to be wanted in the United States. It remains unclear if he was released by Mexican authorities or if he escaped.

Robert Arce is a retired Phoenix Police detective with extensive experience working Mexican organized crime and street gangs. Arce has worked in the Balkans, Iraq, Haiti, and recently completed a three-year assignment in Monterrey, Mexico, working out of the Consulate for the United States Department of State, International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Program, where he was the Regional Program Manager for Northeast Mexico (Coahuila, Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, Durango, San Luis Potosi, Zacatecas.)