Virginia, United States

A man who has been accused of playing a role in the 1991 killing of his wife was extradited earlier this month from Costa Rica, ending his more than three decades on the run, said the US police, on Monday (Jan 22). 

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In 2022, the man suspected of his wife’s murder, Jose Lazaro Cruz, 60, was arrested in Costa Rica and brought back to Fairfax County, Virginia, earlier this month, ending the 32-year-old case.

About the case

On April 30, 1991, the police responded to a call about the stabbing and found Ana Jurado, 24, dead in the street, said Eli Cory, Fairfax County’s deputy chief of investigation. She is said to have suffered a slashing wound to her neck and bled to death, according to the police. 

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Lazaro Cruz, who was Jurado’s then-estranged husband was identified as the suspected killer and charged a month later, but he fled. 

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Jurado was the mother of three at the time of her death. Her three-year-old and seven-month-old daughters lived with her in the US while her four-year-old son lived in El Salvador. 

‘Not a typical cold case’

Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis, as per CNN, said this case is not a “traditional cold case” as Lazaro Cruz was identified right away, he was just “on the lam.”

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According to the police, Lazaro Cruz, after the murder tried to flee to Canada but was refused entry due to falsified documents. Cory also said that one of the border agents said they noticed what appeared to be a “fresh cut” on his hand at the time.

The suspected murderer then managed to evade authorities and travelled to Houston, Texas, from where he is believed to have been smuggled out of the United States with the help of a smuggler, eventually ending up in El Salvador. 

However, at the time, El Salvador did not have any mechanisms or policies in place which would allow Lazaro Cruz’s extradition. It was not until 2000, that the country’s constitution was amended, which allowed extradition of Salvadoran nationals.

In 2022, the US Justice Department said that Lazaro Cruz had been detained by Costa Rican authorities while trying to enter their country from Nicaragua. 

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According to Cory, Lazaro Cruz remarried and had several children since the 1991 killing and “definitely started a whole new life in El Salvador.” 

As of now though, while the official charges against him are being sorted, the alleged murderer is in the Fairfax County Correctional Center awaiting trial.

(With inputs from agencies)