A man who had been evading law enforcement for over two decades was arrested recently. Authorities apprehended 52-year-old Juan Carlos Munoz, who had been wanted by the Ashtabula County Sheriff’s Office in Ohio since January 11, 2002. He faced charges of kidnapping and gross sexual imposition.

The U.S. Marshals Service, in collaboration with the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force (NOVFTF), made the arrest during a traffic stop. Munoz had been living under a false identity and attempted to mislead officers by providing a different name during the stop.

In the past year, the NOVFTF took on the responsibility of locating Munoz. They conducted an extensive investigation into his whereabouts. On Thursday, task force members observed Munoz getting into a vehicle and driving away from a location they were monitoring.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office later pulled over the vehicle for a traffic violation. During the stop, Munoz presented a false Ohio identification and claimed to be another individual. However, a swift investigation by the NOVFTF included fingerprint analysis, which confirmed his true identity as the fugitive.

Munoz was arrested on the spot based on his outstanding warrant. U.S. Marshal Pete Elliott commented on the case, stating, "After 23 years of evading arrest, our task force arrested this deceptive and dangerous fugitive. This fugitive went to extreme lengths to avoid being arrested, including assuming another identity over twenty years ago and has been living under that alias all this time."

Following his arrest, Munoz was taken to the Lake County Jail. He is currently awaiting extradition to Ashtabula County. The investigation into his activities is ongoing.