The lone remaining defendant charged in the 1998 fatal ambush of a state corrections officer in Anaheim 18 years ago was behind bars Friday in Orange County, after being captured in Mexico.
The TV show “America’s Most Wanted” featured the search for Espinoza in an August 2012 episode.
Espinoza had been living under an assumed name. He had been previously been taken in custody in Mexicali last March on an unrelated case, but was released before authorities determined his true identity, Wyatt said.
Espinoza was immediately deported and brought back to Anaheim on Thursday night, Wyatt said. He was being held in Anaheim’s jail without bail, Wyatt said.
Begaren’s husband, Nuzzio Begaren, 54, was convicted of hiring gang members to gun down his bride and was sentenced in May 2014 to 25 years to life in prison.
Rudy Duran, 40, was sentenced last May to six years in prison, but he had amassed that much credit for time served awaiting trial and was released. He pleaded guilty in March 2015 to conspiracy to murder and testified for prosecutors in Begaren’s trial.
Co-defendant Jose Luis Sandoval, who also testified against Begaren, pleaded guilty in October 2013 to voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to time already served behind bars.
The victim’s murder initially appeared to investigators as a random roadside ambush, but detectives later figured out that Begaren had his wife killed to collect a $1 million insurance policy.
A $50,000 reward was offered for information leading to Espinoza’s capture, and it’s possible someone may have a claim to that now, Wyatt said. The sergeant would not offer any further details on what helped investigators track down the defendant.
Espinoza was indicted on a first-degree murder charge, with special circumstance allegations of murder during a robbery and murder for financial gain.
— City News Service