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After years of hiding, man lands in prison for killing wife in 1991
After more than three decades on the run, Jose Lazaro Cruz, a man wanted in connection with the 1991 killing of his wife, Ana Jurado, was finally brought back to the United States from Costa Rica to face trial.
The long-awaited extradition marked the end of his evasion of justice for the 32-year-old murder case.
Following his arrest in Costa Rica in 2022, Lazaro Cruz was returned to Fairfax County, Virginia, to be prosecuted for the tragic incident.
It remains unclear whether he has legal representation, as CNN reached out to the Commonwealth Attorney for Fairfax County and the Fairfax County Public Defender Office for further details.
The case dates back to April 30, 1991, when Fairfax County police responded to a stabbing call and discovered 24-year-old Ana Jurado deceased in the street from trauma to her upper body.
Lazaro Cruz, her estranged husband at the time, was identified as the alleged perpetrator by the police but managed to flee the scene.
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After failed attempts to travel to Canada, where he was denied entry due to falsified documentation and a noticeable injury on his hand, Lazaro Cruz continued to evade authorities by moving to Houston, Texas, and later to El Salvador, possibly with the help of a smuggler.
During his time in El Salvador, the country lacked the means to extradite him to the United States until amendments to the constitution were made in 2000, allowing for the extradition of Salvadoran nationals.
Jurado was the mother of three young children. Her 3-year-old and 7-month-old daughters lived with her in the US and her 4-year-old son lived in El Salvador at the time of her death.
Throughout the years, Lazaro Cruz remarried and had several children, prompting Fairfax County Deputy Chief of Investigation Eli Cory to note that he “definitely started a whole new life” in El Salvador.
With the extradition complete, Lazaro Cruz is now in the Fairfax County Correctional Center, awaiting trial for the 1991 murder of Ana Jurado.
Despite the years that have passed, Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis emphasised that this case is not a “traditional cold case,” as the alleged perpetrator was identified immediately; he was simply “on the lam” until now.
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