By Hailey Branson-Potts, Los Angeles Times –
LOS ANGELES — A man on the FBI’s 10 most wanted fugitive list after an alleged murder spree in Los Angeles was arrested this past week.
He is in Los Angeles Police Department custody and is expected to be arraigned this week on murder charges, said Laura Eimiller, an FBI spokeswoman.
Jose Luis Saenz, who is believed to have worked for a Mexican drug cartel, was arrested after a joint investigation by the FBI, LAPD and Mexican authorities, Eimiller said.
Authorities believe that Saenz, a reputed gang member, shot and killed two gang rivals in Boyle Heights, an east Los Angeles neighborhood, in 1998.
Days later, he allegedly kidnapped, raped and killed his girlfriend.
He is believed to have killed a fourth person in Los Angeles County in October 2008, according to the FBI.
Saenz, who is believed to be 36 or 37, was flown Friday under FBI escort from Guadalajara to Los Angeles International Airport, Eimiller said.
Saenz has “been sought for some time,” she said. “There’s a lot of determination that went into this capture.”
Saenz — who was believed by the FBI to use the aliases “Zapp,” “Toro” and “Peanut Joe Smiley,” among others — was added to the 10 most wanted list in 2009.
Authorities “suspected that he had crossed the border to Mexico and back often,” Eimiller said.
