Suspect in 1986 Homicide Arrested by Deputy U.S. Marshals

SEATTLE – United States Marshal Mark Ericks announces the arrest of Carlos Vidal Guiterrez for homicide.  Deputy United States Marshals from the Pacific Northwest Fugitive Apprehension Task Force (PNWFAT) from the Western District of Washington, along with US Marshals Service task force personnel from the Eastern District of California and the Northern District of California arrested Guiterrez this afternoon near the city of Hollister, Calif.  He was taken into custody without incident and booked into jail.  Guiterrez is believed responsible for the shooting which resulted in the death of a person outside of a business in Centralia, Washington, in 1986.

U.S. Marshals task force personnel from Vancouver, Washington, initiated an investigation of this cold case in June of last year after developing information on Guiterrez.  This information led Deputies to the Hollister, California area.  Guiterrez was located and taken into custody without incident by Deputy US Marshals as he was working in Aromas, California.  He was transported to the San Benito County Jail in Hollister to await extradition back to the state of Washington.

The Pacific Northwest Fugitive Apprehension Task Force is a U.S. Marshals-sponsored partnership comprised of investigators from the King County Sheriff’s Office, Seattle Police Department, Clark County Sheriff’s Office, Vancouver Police Department, Washington State Department of Corrections, the U.S. Social Security Administration-OIG, and the U.S. Marshals Service. The Task Force concentrates apprehension efforts to remove federal, state and local fugitives from the streets. The Task Force objective is to disrupt illegal gang, gun and drug activity in the Pacific Northwest and to reduce the amount of violence in the region.