A Texas man captured by Tennessee state troopers was wanted for the gang-related murder of a Virginia teenager.
Miguel Angel Ruiz Carrillo, 18, was reported missing and endangered by Fairfax County Police on Aug. 8. His body was found a few weeks later.
Ismael Antonio Navarro, 19, was identified as a suspect and warrants put out for his arrest. Virginia State Police tracked his cell phone to Tennessee, and contacted Tennessee Highway Patrol, who started looking for him. Authorities performed a felony traffic stop on Navarro's vehicle in I-81 in Greene County and took him into custody.
Several other men are also charged in the case.
Original story: Dec. 20, 2017
Tennessee state troopers arrested a man said to be wanted in Texas and Virginia for multiple homicides Wednesday morning.
Sgt. Nathan Hall with the Tennessee Highway Patrol said troopers received a call around 10:30 Wednesday morning from Virginia State Police to be on the lookout for 19-year-old Ismael Antonio Navarro, an Hispanic man driving a vehicle with Texas plates along Interstate 81.
Virginia police told THP the man was said to be wanted on warrants for several homicides in Virginia and Texas and was a member of a gang. Hall said he wasn't sure of the exact nature of the crimes.
Multiple Tennessee authorities were called to assist after VSP pinged the suspect's cellphone in Sullivan County.
Hall said he and several other troopers were set up to search for and intercept the vehicle along I-81 in Greene County. Troopers noticed an SUV with a suspect fitting the description given to them by Virginia police, saying the driver looked nervous and was going slow.
Once the troopers notified their chain of command, Hall said they went ahead with a felony traffic stop at mile marker 22. THP said they were able to arrest the suspect without incident, and confirmed with Virginia police with a cell phone picture that that it was the suspect they had been looking for.
Hall said a juvenile male and another woman were in the vehicle and were being released by authorities.
Troopers said the SUV Navarro was driving was a Chevy Trailblazer and had taped-on tags. Authorities found an assortment of things inside the truck, including clown masks, a Bowie knife, drug paraphernalia, a gun cleaning tool and more. Hall said he wasn't sure if what they found was related to the crimes the suspect was wanted for.
The suspect has yet to be identified by authorities. THP handed him over to Virginia State Police to be extradited and are assisting in the investigation.
"Anytime you are six feet above ground on a law enforcement day, you're very fortunate," Hall said. "Everything went textbook."