A 37-year-old man has been arrested in El Paso in connection with the slaying of his roommate last month in Fort Worth.
Christopher Gutierrez is believed to have fled Fort Worth shortly after the slaying of Mario Jaimez-Gonzalez, 26, who was found dead Dec. 10 in the back yard of a residence they shared in the 1200 block of E. Peach St., northeast of downtown.A ruling on Jaimez-Gonzalez's cause of death was still pending Wednesday though police said the man appeared to have suffered stab wounds."The investigation revealed that the victim was having trouble with a roommate and two roommates are missing from the residence," said homicide Sgt. Cheryl Johnson.Gutierrez, one of those roommates, was located in El Paso on Friday night and was arrested without incident on a murder warrant by the FBI Cross Border Task Force with assistance from El Paso police and the Lone Star Fugitive Task Force.He was booked into the El Paso County Jail, where he remained Wednesday awaiting his return to Fort Worth.Police are still trying to locate the other roommate, Johnson said.Jaimez-Gonzalez was one of 49 people slain last year in Fort Worth, according to a tally kept by the Star-Telegram. The number of homicides for 2012 was slightly down from 2011, when the city recorded 51 slayings.It is the lowest number of slayings since 2009, when the city recorded 45 -- a record low.The last homicide victim of 2012 has now been identified by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's office as Greta Grayson, 62.Grayson was found dead at an apartment complex on East Seminary Drive on the afternoon of Dec. 31. Her boyfriend, 61-year-old Albert Edward Beasley, was later arrested in the case and remained in the Tarrant County Jail Wednesday, charged with murder. A complaint alleges that Beasley killed Grayson by beating her with his hands, foot, or a board.The city has had one slaying so far this year as of Wednesday afternoon.Malcolm Jennings, 21, died Jan. 1, hours after he and two other men were shot at a New Year's Day party in the 6200 block of Warrington Place. Police have said two gunman opened fire at partygoers following an argument over unwanted advances that had been made toward one of the wounded men's girlfriend.For 2012, the homicide unit reported an 82 percent clearance rate. According to the unit, criminal charges were filed in 36 of the homicides with an additional four being closed because the suspect had killed himself.Nine of the homicides remain unsolved.In addition, homicide investigators cleared 7 slayings from previous years, bringing the unit's overall clearance rate for 2012 to 96 percent, Johnson said.The numbers did not include Gutierrez's arrest, which will count in 2013 statistics, Johnson said.Deanna Boyd, 817-390-7655Twitter: @deannaboydHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
