Man Who Allegedly Stabbed Father Of Seven To Death Had Been Deported Six Times
It’s been discovered that a man who is currently sitting in a U.S. jail cell for a grisly murder had already been deported back to his home country of Mexico a total of six times.
Local law enforcement in Pasco, Washington announced back in February that detectives, with the help of the FBI, were able to extradite Mexican national Adan Virgen-Ponce and place him into custody. Virgen-Ponce had been wanted by police for a murder that took place over eight years ago.
He is suspected of stabbing to death Froilan Godines on February 7, 2010, at El Patron, a nightclub and restaurant in the town of Pasco. The altercation transpired when Godines, who was working as a doorman for El Patron, had confronted Virgen-Ponce for trying to leave the nightclub with alcohol. The argument ultimately led to Virgen-Ponce fatally stabbing him multiple times.
Police were able to quickly identify Virgen-Ponce as a suspect at the time, but he had evaded capture by fleeing back to his home country of Mexico. However, Virgen-Ponce had since been sentenced to prison in Mexico, and was serving jail time when U.S. authorities were able to extradite him back to Washington state. He has been charged with first-degree murder.
The February arrest brought long-due closure for Godines’ family members.
“Words can’t explain how much we miss him…how much we love him,” Godines’ daughter, Karen, stated to local media shortly after her father’s killer was apprehended by U.S. officials. “And sincerely from the bottom of our heart, I just want to thank him for giving me such a good life and a good family.”
Godines was killed two days before his 42nd birthday. He left behind seven children.
The Daily Caller News Foundation reached out to U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement to learn whether Virgen-Ponce, who had been residing in the country illegally, was ever been deported back to Mexico prior to his February extradition. A spokeswoman confirmed that he had, in fact, been removed from the U.S. a total of six times.
“ICE lodged a detainer with the Franklin County Jail on Adan Virgen-Ponce, aka Yovan Lopez-Perez, a citizen of Mexico, after he was arrested on local charges,” ICE spokesperson Tanya Roman stated to TheDCNF on Friday. “Virgen-Ponce has been removed him [sic] from the U.S. on six prior occasions and he voluntarily returned once. On May 10, 2004, Virgin-Ponce was convicted in U.S. District Court for violation of 8 USC 1325/Present Without Admission and was sentenced to 45-days incarceration.”
Virgen-Ponce’s is currently being held in Franklin County jail in Washington state, with bail set at $1,000,000.
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