ICE Lubbock office locates 'cold case' suspect from 1992 west Texas murder

LUBBOCK, Texas — A suspect in a 1992 west Texas murder was arrested Thursday in Colorado by U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) investigators, after he and his wife were located by officers with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Jose Luis Aguilar, aka Jose Luis Martinez Aguilar, 41, from Mexico, was arrested July 25 after officers with ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) were asked by Hale County (Texas) Sheriff's Office (HCSO) to assist with its "cold case" investigation. Aguilar is a suspect in the murder of Guadalupe C. Fraise in April 1992 who was shot three times during an argument at a rodeo in Plainview, Texas.

During their investigation into this cold case, ERO officers based in Lubbock identified a woman suspected of being Aguilar's wife who was located in Colorado. HCSO later confirmed that Aguilar and the woman were a married couple, and coordinated the arrest arrangements with USMS.

USMS investigators established surveillance at the residence on the East 16000 block of Green Valley Ranch Boulevard in Denver. They possessed a computer-generated age-progression photo based on a single photograph of Aguilar from 1991 to use for identification purposes.

At about 8:15 a.m. July 25, USMS investigators observed a male, who matched Aguilar's physical characteristics and the age-progression photo, leaving the residence. Once they contacted the man at the intersection of 46th Avenue and Chambers Road, and confirmed it was Aguilar, they placed him into custody.

"Our ERO officers have unique training and expertise with locating criminal suspects," said Simona L. Flores, field office director of ERO Dallas. "We are always eager to assist other law enforcement agencies to identify, locate, arrest and prosecute those suspected of committing egregious crimes."

Aguilar's true identity was later confirmed by fingerprint match. He was then booked into the Douglas County Jail on $1 million bond pending his extradition to Texas.