Illegal Alien Gang Member Wanted For Murder Caught In Va.

WOODBRIDGE, VA (Newsweek) – After a long manhunt of an alleged MS-13 gang member, FBI officials announced Saturday they had finally apprehended Walter Yovany Gomez.

Gomez, an illegal immigrant from Honduras, had been listed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list in connection to the 2011 murder of a fellow MS-13 member.

Authorities found Gomez living in Woodbridge, Virginia, about 20 miles away from Washington D.C., and arrested him on Friday following a well-coordinated investigation and help from the public. Following his capture, Special Agent Timothy Gallagher, who heads the FBI’s Newark Office, said in a statement that Gomez will stand trial for his “alleged involvement in a brutal murder which took a young man from his family,” according to Fox News.

Walter Yovany Gomez is wanted for his alleged involvement in the murder of a man in Plainfield, New Jersey, in May 2011. The victim was suspected of socializing with a rival gang and had been ordered to be killed by MS-13 leaders. It is alleged that Gomez and another gang member, after an evening of socializing with the victim, attacked him. The victim was struck in the head numerous times, had his throat cut, and was stabbed 17 times in the back.

“The apprehension of Walter Yovany Gomez is a prime example of the close coordination between the vigilant public and the hard working men and women of law enforcement,” Gallagher said.

Gomez was first put on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list back in April, with the department offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to his arrest.

Now that Gomez has been apprehended, Gallagher said he faces extradition to New Jersey for his role in the death of Julio Matute. Gomez, who had been reported at a party in Plainfield that Matute also attended the night of his death, was accused of beating the man with a baseball bat, stabbing him 17 times with a knife and then slitting his throat with a screwdriver.

Gomez had almost been caught by authorities back in 2011 during a police chase following Matute’s death. However, he managed to get away after jumping out of a second story window.