Fairfield police investigators and the U.S. Marshals Service have arrested one of two suspects in the October 20 robbery and killing at a Fairfield jewelry store, with license-plate reader cameras providing the lead that identified the suspects, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported on November 13, citing a Fairfield police news release.
Carlos Idrogo-Arias was arrested on November 4 in New York City and is in custody awaiting extradition back to Ohio, the Fairfield department said in its news release, as reported by the Enquirer. Officials have not disclosed what charges Idrogo-Arias is facing, the Enquirer reported. A second suspect, Richard Guzman-Guzman, is still at large, and investigators believe he is hiding somewhere in New York or New Jersey, according to the Enquirer.
Two men entered the Everest Jewels store on Dixie Highway just before 1 p.m. on October 20 and approached the store’s owner, 52-year-old Tara Sinchuri, under the guise of making a purchase, officials said, in reporting by the Enquirer. The men then pulled firearms, a struggle ensued, and Sinchuri was shot and killed, officials said, according to the Enquirer.
The two suspects took valuables from the store before speeding off in a vehicle police later identified through the department’s Flock license plate reader cameras, officials said, in the Enquirer report. The investigative lead from Flock and the store’s surveillance video helped authorities identify the suspects, they said, according to the Enquirer.
The investigation involved Fairfield police, the FBI, Homeland Security, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Enquirer reported. “An investigation of this magnitude requires significant resources and coordination,” the Fairfield release states, as quoted by the Enquirer.
Butler County Prosecutor Mike Gmoser told the Enquirer that identifying the suspects would not have happened without Flock cameras, and that both suspects are affiliated with a criminal gang. “It’s a vital tool,” Gmoser told the Enquirer, urging Butler County departments to document investigations in which the technology proved beneficial, while saying safeguards should be in place and officers who abuse access should face repercussions, the Enquirer reported.
What happens next is extradition and a court case in Ohio for Idrogo-Arias, and a continuing search for Guzman-Guzman in New York or New Jersey. Anyone with information about the second suspect’s whereabouts should contact Fairfield police. NewsForce247 will follow the extradition and the filing of charges, which officials had not disclosed as of November 13, according to the Enquirer.
Photo: Greg Hume, CC BY-SA