Lynwood Murder Suspect Held in Mexico, Faces Extradition

A Lynwood man who fled to Mexico after allegedly killing two teenage girls in 1999 was arrested Tuesday and faces extradition to the United States because Los Angeles prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty.

Juan Manuel Casillas, 22, was arrested in Mexico City on Tuesday on suspicion of fatally shooting cousins Jessica Yvette Zavala and Olivia Munguia as they walked to school in Lynwood, Los Angeles County district attorney’s officials said.

Mexican authorities agreed to arrest Casillas only after Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley decided that he would not seek the death penalty against Casillas. Mexican authorities will not extradite suspects who face the death penalty.

Casillas’ case is being handled under a district attorney’s office policy started in January that allows some murder suspects who have fled the country to face sentences of life without the possibility of parole.

Former Dist. Atty. Gil Garcetti refused to seek lesser sentences for alleged killers on the lam in foreign countries, maintaining that it would set a bad precedent to let criminals dodge the death sentence by fleeing.

Cooley said the new policy is aimed at ending stalemates that have allowed murder suspects to be free in countries that refuse to subject their citizens to capital punishment.

Under Cooley’s policy, a district attorney’s committee can now decide whether to seek the death penalty before a suspect is in custody in the United States and before a preliminary hearing is held. In January, that committee decided not to pursue a death sentence for Casillas, prompting Cooley to obtain an international arrest warrant.

“Without that decision in place, we would never be able to bring Mr. Casillas to justice and closure to the Zavala family,” Cooley said Tuesday.

Jessica, 15, and Olivia, 17, were shot just before 8 a.m. on June 8, 1999, as they walked to Lynwood High School. They were only blocks from their home.

Prosecutors say witnesses saw Casillas, believed to be Olivia’s former boyfriend, leave the scene. Authorities believe he fled to Mexico soon after the shooting.

Saul Zavala, Jessica’s father, who carries pictures of the girls with him, has made it his mission to see that Casillas is brought to the United States.

After hitting a dead end with Garcetti, Zavala attended one of Cooley’s campaign rallies in March 2000 and asked for his help.

Cooley said the Zavalas’ plight touched him, and he promised to do whatever he could to help them.

Since taking office, Cooley has been meeting with the Zavalas regularly and has been working with the FBI and Mexican authorities to get Casillas arrested and extradited.

Casillas was arrested at a gas station Tuesday, said Jorge Garcia-Villalobos, a federal prosecutor with the Mexico attorney general’s office. Although Casillas gave police a false name at first, he eventually admitted his identity. Casillas is in custody at a Mexico City prison, authorities said.

“It’s an example of international cooperation and shows that the borderline will not be synonymous with impunity or immunity,” said Garcia-Villalobos, head of the Mexico attorney general’s Los Angeles office.

Garcia-Villalobos said Casillas will not be extradited for at least 60 days. Cooley must provide evidence to the Mexico attorney general’s office, which presents that evidence to a Mexican federal judge at an extradition hearing.