After two months on the run, a fugitive ex-LAPD officer was behind bars Tuesday night in El Paso, Texas, just hours after being arrested in Mexico in connection with a shooting in Pomona that left a 23-year-old man dead, law enforcement officials.
Henry Solis was a probationary officer with the Los Angeles Police Department when he was accused of fatally shooting Salome Rodriguez Jr. during an altercation between the two men on March 13 in a Pomona bar.
On Tuesday, Solis was arrested in Ciudad Juarez, and turned over to the FBI and U.S. Marshals, CNN reported.
The 27-year-old fugitive was transported back to the U.S. Tuesday evening, and was booked into the El Paso County Jail, according to a statement from the Pomona Police Department.
Solis will be awaiting extradition back to California to face murder charges, the department stated.
An arrest warrant was issued for Solis within days of the shooting.
“Suspect Solis is a police officer and should be considered armed and dangerous,” an advisory from Pomona police stated. “The suspect knows he is wanted, and that police are actively searching for him.”
Solis fled to Texas and then across the border into Mexico with his father’s aid, the FBI stated.
Solis’ father, Victor, allegedly told officials in Texas that he had dropped off his son at an El Paso bus station, but video later surfaced allegedly showing the two going into Juarez, Mexico.
Victor Solis was arrested in March, and faced charges connected to his actions, including lying to a federal agent in an attempt to conceal his son’s location, according to court documents.
Solis was terminated from the department a week after the incident.
“You have dishonored this Police Department, your country and your service to the country, and your family … you should turn yourself in and face the consequences for your actions,” LAPD Chief Charlie Beck stated in a message intended for Solis following the announcement of his termination.
The FBI had offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to Henry Solis’ arrest. It was not immediately known if anyone would be awarded the money.