FBI: Murder suspect arrested after fleeing

Edgar Alvarez arrested for shooting, killing Emeon Hernandez in California

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – A man wanted for murder in California was arrested in Coral Gables on Wednesday, the FBI announced.

The arrest of Edgar Alvarez, 33, was years in the making. Alvarez was wanted for the shooting death of Emeon Hernandez inside a restaurant in Moreno Valley, California, on December 29, 2006, authorities said. Alvarez had been arrested with Hernandez in Chicago, Illinois, for money laundering, on October 3, 2006, about three months prior to the shooting, authorities said.

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The murder of Hernandez was investigated by the Riverside County Sheriff's Department's Central Homicide Unit. On January 4, 2007, a no bail felony warrant was issued in Riverside County charging Alvarez with murder. Shortly after that, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department asked for the FBI's help in locating Alvarez, who was believed to have fled.

On August 1, 2007, a federal arrest warrant was issued for Alvarez, charging him with Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution.

Investigators said information indicated that Alvarez fled to Mexico after the murder and returned to the United States sometime in 2009. Since that time, Alvarez is believed to have had resided in multiple areas, including Las Vegas, Tennessee, and Florida while investigators sought his specific whereabouts, authorities said.

During the past month, investigators said they developed information indicating Alvarez was located in the Miami area of Florida.

Agents and task force officers with the FBI's South Florida Violent Crime/Fugitive Task Force took Alvarez into custody Wednesday without incident. The Coral Gables Police Department and the United States Secret Service assisted with the Miami operation.

The fugitive investigation was conducted by the Inland Regional Apprehension Team (IRAT), which is made up of agents and officers with the FBI; Riverside County Sheriff's Department; Riverside Police Department; and the San Bernardino Police
Department.

The FBI's Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Memphis, and Miami divisions worked together during the final weeks of the investigation to identify the location of the fugitive in Coral Gables, Florida.

Alvarez is being held at the Dade County Detention Center in Miami, Florida and is expected to be transported back to Riverside County in the near future. Officials said they anticipate the United States government will dismiss the federal warrant charging Alvarez with UFAP and that he will remain in custody while he awaits prosecution for the state charge of murder by the Riverside County District Attorney's Office.