U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force in Texas arrested a wanted Mexican national on Monday for his alleged role in the brutal murder of a woman in Georgetown, Texas, in 2020. Hernan Perez Juarez, also known as “Patricio Perez,” 41, is charged with murder in connection with the May 8, 2020, killing of a woman who was found dead in her bathtub with a deep cut in her lower abdomen. The suspect was previously deported in 2018 for an immigration violation and had no legal status in the United States.
According to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Perez Juarez reentered the country illegally before committing the crime. Authorities later found his vehicle abandoned in Laredo, near the international border of Mexico, according to the U.S. Marshals. In March 2022, the Georgetown Police Department (GPD) obtained an arrest warrant for Perez Juarez, though the case stalled due to his unknown whereabouts. Earlier this month, an Austin-based task force learned that Perez Juarez had returned to the U.S. illegally, according to the U.S. Marshals.
He was arrested in Temple, Texas on Monday and taken to the Williamson County Jail awaiting further judicial proceedings. ICE has filed an immigration detainer on Perez Juarez following the judicial process in Williamson County. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. The case highlights the challenges faced by law enforcement in tracking fugitives who cross the border illegally and have no legal status in the United States.