First appeared on FOX: Authorities in California have arrested an illegal immigrant who has been deported thrice in connection with a house fire that killed a mother and two of her three children last month, law enforcement sources said.
Stockton police announced the arrest of suspect Jose Carmen Cardona, 59, on Friday morning.
A source familiar with the investigation told Fox News Digital that the suspect had been deported three times but was eventually returned to the United States.
Illegal immigrant accused of murdering Maryland mother Rachel Morin faces maximum sentence if convicted
Jose Carmen Cardona is seen in an arrest warrant photo after his arrest Friday on charges of arson and murder in connection with a house fire that killed a mother and two young boys. (Stockton Police Department)
The victims have been identified as Lisbeth Gutierrez Salazar, 32, and her two sons, Juan Gutierrez Salazar, 10, and Julian Cardona Gutierrez, 7. Only a third boy, whose name was not immediately released, escaped.
They were all asleep inside the mobile home at the time Cardona allegedly set it on fire.
Police said Cardona was in a relationship with the mother but was not the children’s father.
Suspect in New Orleans tour guide murder case illegal in US, has criminal record: ICE
In this file photo, Stockton Police officers discuss the incident outside two parked patrol cars. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
According to authorities, the suspect fled the scene and police obtained an arrest warrant on June 28 and requested assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service.
The nationwide manhunt ended Friday with the arrest of a suspect in Modesto, about 30 miles from the crime scene.
Jose Carmen Cardona, a 59-year-old Hispanic man, was booked into the San Joaquin County Jail on a murder charge. (Stockton Police Department)
Cardona faces charges of murder, attempted murder and child endangerment, as well as multiple special charges of murder, arson and torture, all of which carry the death penalty.
Click here to get the FOX News app
He is scheduled to appear in court for arraignment on Monday.
Meanwhile, he is being held without bail in the San Joaquin County Jail in French Camp, California.
The San Joaquin District Attorney’s Office was scheduled to release an update on the case at 2 p.m. PDT or 5 p.m. ET.
This is breaking news, check back for updates.
