Chicago Murder Suspect Arrested in New York

January 28, 2010 - Robert D. Grant, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was joined today by Joseph M. Demarest, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the FBI’s New York office, in announcing the arrest of a fugitive wanted for the December 2008 stabbing death of a Chicago man.

DAVID D. BELL, age 20, whose last known address was 5814 South Indiana in Chicago, was arrested late Tuesday evening, without incident, by FBI Special Agents and Detectives from the New York City Police Department. Bell was tracked to a public laundry located at 630 Eagle Avenue in the Bronx, where he was found doing his laundry. BELL has been the subject of a nationwide manhunt, coordinated by the Chicago FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force (VCTF), since March of last year after being charged in a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago with unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution (UFAP), which is a felony offense.

According to the complaint, in January of 2009 BELL was charged in Cook County Circuit Court with First Degree Murder for the stabbing death of Isiah Stroud, following an altercation between the two men in the 1500 block of West Jarvis in Chicago. After being charged with this crime, attempts by the Chicago Police Department to locate and apprehend BELL were unsuccessful. It was later learned that BELL had fled the state and the federal warrant charging him with Unlawful Flight was issued.

Subsequent investigation by the Chicago VCTF tracked BELL to New York City, were he was eventually arrested.

BELL is being held without bond in New York City at Manhattan Central Booking, pending his extradition to Illinois.

This case was investigated locally by the Chicago FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force (VCTF) which is comprised of FBI Special Agents, Detectives from the Chicago Police Department and Investigators from the Cook County Sheriff’s Police. Detectives from the CPD, Area 3, also assisted in locating BELL.

The public is reminded that a complaint is not evidence of guilt and that all defendants in a criminal case are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Copies of the criminal complaint filed in this case are available from the Chicago FBI’s press office at (312) 829-1199.