The suspect in a Moab slaying was apprehended Wednesday after a 100-mile chase.
Irving Martin Verduzco-Armenta is suspected of killing Edgar Najera early Sunday, according to a news release from the Moab Police Department. He was arrested with two other men suspected of helping him evade police.
Officers from the Navajo Nation Police Department on Wednesday received a report of three suspicious men. The officers pursued the vehicle carrying Verduzco-Armenta and two other men, but lost the car on a dirt road near Tuba City, Ariz.
Another officer later spotted the car on the side of a highway and another pursuit began. The chase went on for about 100 miles, according to the news release. The suspects’ car overheated and they ran, the release said. Police were able to catch them and arrested them.
Moab police responded to a report of a fight about 1:30 a.m. Sunday in the 200 West block of Walnut Lane. One resident took officers to a trailer where Najera, 30, was found dead inside. He had multiple gunshot wounds.
Moab police found four people who had fled in a sports-utility vehicle, but were unable to find Verduzco-Armenta. A search of court records indicates he has not been formally charged with any crimes in Utah.
Thursday’s news release says Verduzco-Armenta and the two men who were with him are being held in Arizona on charges arising from the report of suspicious activity and the pursuit.
Update, Thursday, Nov. 15, 12:40 p.m.: Verduzco-Armenta and two other suspects, Jaime Flores-Solis and Jorge Hernandez, have been extradited from Arizona to Moab, the Moab Police Department announced. They are being held in the Grand County Sheriff’s Office jail.
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