U.S. Arrests Two Suspects in Ciudad Juarez Murders as Mexico Ends Federal Investigation

The U.S. has arrested two suspects in the murders of young women in Ciudad Jurarez, Mexico. On August 15, 2006, U.S. authorities in Denver, Colorado arrested Edgar Alvarez Cruz on immigration violations, prompting a statement from U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Tony Garza that his arrest is a “major break” in the investigations into the unsolved deaths in Cuidad Juarez, Mexico. On August 21, 2006, U.S. officials announced that José Francisco Granados de la Paz, detained for immigration violations in Virginia, is suspected of involvement in killings in 2001 in Cuidad Juarez. Only in June 2006, Mexican federal officials quietly closed a three-year inquiry into the rape-strangulation of 14 women and teenagers in Juarez.