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Albuquerque, NM - A major
fugitive wanted on outstanding state and federal charges of murder,
kidnapping, and probation violation (with an underlying charge of
convicted Felon in Possession of a Firearm) has been apprehended by a
team of law enforcement officers led by U.S. Marshals in Albuquerque and
Austin, TX.
David McCarthy was being sought on warrants issued in Albuquerque
charging him with six offenses, including one open count of murder.
McCarthy and Travis Rigel, his accomplice, are accused of brutally
beating and killing Felix Zamora, of Albuquerque, on Feb. 28. According
to a criminal complaint, McCarthy and Rigel called Zamora after their
truck broke down near the foothills area of Albuquerque. Zamora drove
the pair to a residence at which time he was beaten with a crow bar,
kicked, and tied up. Allegedly, the men then took Zamora to a remote
clearing in the East Mountains where he was shot in the head execution
style before moving his body a few days later. Today, investigators
located the body of a man believed to be Zamora buried near Sedillo
Hill.
Rigel was apprehended Wednesday on charges of possession of stolen
property, at which time he confessed that he and McCarthy were
responsible for killing Zamora. Rigel led officers to the murder scene
where suspected coagulated blood, brain matter, and other evidence were
discovered.
The U.S. Marshals Service Southwest Investigative Fugitive Task Force
(SWIFT) in Albuquerque developed investigative leads indicating that
McCarthy was hiding in the Austin area. Members of the SWIFT Task Force
negotiated with McCarthy to surrender to U.S. Marshals in Austin, where
he was taken into custody without incident and is being held pending his
extradition to New Mexico.
According to Deputy U.S. Marshal James Badway, McCarthy stated “I wanted
to surrender to U.S. Marshals because I knew I would be treated
professionally.”
Annually, investigations
carried out by the U.S. Marshals result in the apprehension of
approximately 34,000 federal fugitives. More federal fugitives are
arrested by Marshals than all other federal agencies combined.
SWIFT is a team comprised of
law enforcement officers from the U.S. Marshals Service, the Albuquerque
Police Department, the Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office, the Santa Fe
County Sheriffs Office, the Rio Rancho Police Department, and the New
Mexico Probation and Parole Office. Its objective is to seek out and
arrest violent fugitives. Last year, U.S. Marshals task forces arrested
more than 27,000 state and local fugitives on felony charges.
Additional information about
the U.S. Marshals can be found at http://www.usmarshals.gov. |
