An interstate manhunt ended early Wednesday near New Florence, Missouri, when police arrested a suspect wanted in five killings.
Pablo Antonio Serrano-Vitorino, 36, was charged with four counts of first-degree murder after a shooting early Tuesday in Kansas City, Kansas. Police also sought Serrano-Vitorino in the death of a fifth man in a separate shooting across the state border in Missouri.
The repercussions of the killing spree will likely extend beyond the local community and the lives lost because of the suspect is an undocumented immigrant.
U.S. immigration officials confirmed that they were aware of Serrano-Vitorino’s presence in the country after he had already been deported once, but that a paperwork error prevented his detention.
In an election year where a hard line against illegal immigration has appealed to many voters served some candidates well, the question will arise: With tougher immigration laws, would this suspected killer have been behind bars instead of in the streets?
Mishandled immigration form
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Serrano-Vitorino was deported to Mexico in 2004. At some point, he re-entered the United States illegally, though ICE said it was unclear when.
But on September 15 of last year, Serrano-Vitorino was fingerprinted at the Overland Park Municipal Court in Kansas, and ICE was alerted.
Because Serrano-Vitorino had illegally re-entered the country after a previous deportation, he was subject to deportation once again. ICE filed an immigration detainer — a request for ICE to take over custody of Serrano-Vitorino prior to the local authorities releasing him.
But ICE mistakenly issued the detainer for him to the wrong sheriff’s office, and as a result of the error, Serrano-Vitorino was not taken into ICE custody then.
Immigration detainers are requests — not orders — and expire after 48 hours if ICE hasn’t taken custody of the individual by then. After 48 hours, if the local agency has no grounds to continue holding a person, they must be released.
Massive manhunt
After the two shootings that left five dead, police sought Serrano-Vitorino for hours, releasing his photo to the public and deploying helicopters and about 100 officers in the search. Authorities described him as “armed and dangerous” and possibly carrying an AK-47.
Around 1 a.m. Wednesday, the Missouri State Highway Patrol received a call from a man who said the suspect pulled a gun on him.
When officers arrived on the scene, they found Serrano-Vitorino lying face down in a ditch, White said. He surrendered without incident.
“He was exhausted,” Sgt. James Hedrick from the highway patrol told The Kansas City Star.
A rifle was taken from him, White said.
Police had sought Serrano-Vitorino after the first shooting in Kansas in which three men died at the scene and a fourth at a hospital. The victims’ identities are being withheld pending notification to their families.
“Anytime you have an individual that’s possibly responsible for five homicides, that’s a very serious incident,” said Sgt. Scott White of the Missouri State Highway Patrol on Wednesday morning. “We’re glad that we’re able to take him into custody.”
It’s unclear what prompted the shootings. Serrano-Vitorino lived next door to the home where the killings took place, CNN affiliate KCTV-TV reported.
Later Tuesday morning, Missouri police responded to a call about a shooting and found the body of Randy J. Nordman, 49, at his rural Montgomery County home. The officers found Serrano-Vitorino’s truck at the residence, said Lt. Paul Reinsch of the highway patrol.
There was no indication vehicles or anything else was stolen from the home or nearby properties, he said.
