‘Most Wanted’ fugitive couple arrested in child murder, sexual assault case

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Five children were rescued after the arrest of their parents in Mexico, who have been on the US marshals’ most wanted list after being on the run for nearly two years.

Edgar Salvador Casian-Garcia, 34, and his girlfriend, Araceli Medina, 38, are charged with murder and multiple counts of child sexual abuse in Franklin County, Washington. the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children said Friday. The couple had been elevated to the sheriff’s 15 Most Wanted list in February, the first time a couple had made the list.

Two of Casian-García’s daughters were found abandoned in Tijuana, Mexico, in late 2020, both allegedly showing signs of “severe physical and sexual abuse,” the Marshals Service said in February. The girls were 8 and 3 years old at the time.

Investigators said they believed the couple was abusing and trafficking their children.

Casian-Garcia and Medina were also wanted for questioning in the murder of the girls’ 7-year-old brother, who was tortured to death in Washington state. His body was found in rural Washington in February 2022.

Casian-Garcia and Medina’s travels between the time the girls were found in Mexico in 2020 and when they were known to have crossed the border in 2021 are unclear.

The couple crossed the border into Mexico in June 2021, in what investigators believe was an attempt to flee after the boy’s death. The sheriff’s service said they could have five children with them, three of Medina’s children from a previous marriage and two children Casian-Garcia shared with another woman.

A reward of up to $25,000 was offered each for Casian-Garcia and Medina for tips leading to the couple’s capture.

John Bischoff of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children said Friday that he was thankful the children were rescued.

“The crimes of which Araceli Medina and Edgar Casian-García are charged are egregious, and we commend the unwavering dedication of law enforcement,” Bischoff said.

Casian Garcia and Medina were in custody in Mexico and are expected to be extradited to the United States to face criminal proceedings, the center said.

Both are charged with first-degree aggravated murder, four counts of first-degree rape of a child and three counts of first-degree assault on a child in Franklin County, sheriffs said in February. Court records in his case were not immediately available.

US marshals did not immediately respond to a request for more information from NBC News on Sunday.

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