Federal, County, and City Cooperation Nab Homicide Suspect

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For Immediate Release	Contact:
February 05, 2009	Matt Hershey, Deputy U.S. Marshal Public Affairs Officer (602) 920-4841

Federal, County, and City Cooperation Nab Homicide Suspect

Mesa, AZ – Yesterday afternoon, as a result of cooperative efforts by the U.S. Marshals Service, Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, and Mesa Police Department, members of the Arizona WANTED Task Force arrested Oliver Maldonado, 25, in Mesa. Recently, a warrant was issued by the Maricopa County Superior Court for the arrest of Maldonado for Manslaughter.

It is alleged that in May of 2007, Maldonado was the driver of a vehicle that was involved in a major traffic collision in the City of Mesa. As a result, an occupant of another involved vehicle was mortally wounded and died several days later in a local hospital.

The U.S. Marshals-led Arizona WANTED Task Force has recently partnered with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office in its aggressive efforts to pursue the most dangerous felons in the state and as a result, a homicide suspect was arrested yesterday.

Since the task force’s inception in 1994, it has developed strong networks with state and local law enforcement agencies, particularly in Maricopa County, and shares its information, resources, and utilizes state-of-the-art technology to target and track down the most dangerous fugitives in the state. The task force has become a force-multiplier for law enforcement agencies in the state by enabling its partners to access the U.S. Marshals Service’s nationwide and international resources. The task force is comprised of full-time law enforcement officers and analysts from numerous law enforcement agencies and has offices in Phoenix, Tucson, Yuma, and Flagstaff.

Arizona WANTED Task Force Commander Rick Taylor praised the cooperation and resource sharing of Valley law enforcement agencies adding, “In today’s environment, law enforcement agencies can’t do it alone and the Phoenix Metropolitan area is no exception. Our strong relationships with other law enforcement agencies and our recent partnership with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office are critical to our task force’s tireless efforts in pursuing violent and dangerous fugitives.”

The full-time federal, state, county, and local agencies that comprise the Arizona WANTED include: U.S. Marshals Service; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Arizona Department of Public Safety; Maricopa County Adult Probation Office; Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office; Mesa Police Department; Chandler Police Department; Tempe Police Department; Surprise Police Department; El Mirage Police Department and several part-time state and local law enforcement agencies.

The U.S. Marshals Service is the nation’s oldest federal law enforcement agency. Annually, U.S. Marshals arrest more than 50 percent of all federal fugitives and serve more federal warrants than all other federal agencies combined. For more information on other USMS 15 Most Wanted fugitives and USMS Major Cases, go to www.usmarshals.gov.