A U.S. Border Patrol agent was arrested early Saturday on the suspicion that he killed four women and abducted a fifth, all in the sex trade.
Juan David Ortiz was captured after a woman he’s accused of abducting had escaped, Webb County District Attorney Isidro Alaniz said at a news conference.
Sheriff Martin Cuellar said Ortiz fled from state troopers and was found hiding in the parking lot of a hotel in Laredo, a border city about 235 kilometres southwest of San Antonio.
Alaniz said investigators were still trying to determine a motive for the killings. He said all of the women worked in the sex trade.
Cuellar said investigators have “very strong evidence” that Ortiz is responsible for the deaths of the four women. But authorities declined to discuss the evidence or say how the women were killed.
Alaniz said authorities plan to file four murder charges and one charge of aggravated kidnapping against Ortiz.