May 27--An ex-LAPD officer now in custody accused of murder in a fatal shooting outside a Pomona nightclub was moved from home to home by his extended family in Mexico while he was on the run, FBI officials said Wednesday.
Henry Solis, 27, grew a beard, stayed indoors and avoided using cellphones or social media during the weeks he remained a fugitive, an FBI special agent said at a news conference.
"He was lying pretty low," Special Agent Scott Garriola said.
Mexican officials, he said, pressured Solis' aunts, uncles and cousins about his whereabouts, but it wasn't until last weekend that authorities made a breakthrough in the manhunt.
Garriola, part of the fugitive task force working the case, declined to say what specific information he received, but said he "stumbled upon something good."
The agent relayed the new information to his counterparts in El Paso, who then contacted police in Mexico. On Tuesday afternoon, Solis was arrested, capping a two-month search.
Garriola spoke to reporters Wednesday about the search for Solis, providing new details about how the former cop spent his weeks on the run.
When asked whether Solis made any mistakes that contributed to his capture, Garriola was blunt. "His big screw-up was running away from the crime scene that night," he said.
He said it would be up to Mexican authorities whether to charge any of Solis' relatives who helped harbor him.
FBI officials said they were evaluating whether the $25,000 reward that had been offered for Solis' capture helped generate the information that ultimately led authorities to the ex-officer.
In recent days, authorities had begun putting up billboards on the U.S. side of the Mexican border seeking the public's help in tracking down Solis, FBI officials said.
Authorities allege Solis fatally shot Salome Rodriguez Jr. after a fight at a downtown Pomona bar. Solis, who was off duty at the time, allegedly chased the 23-year-old truck driver outside and then shot him multiple times.
In a statement issued Wednesday, Los Angeles police Chief Charlie Beck welcomed the news of the arrest. Beck, who moved quickly to fire the probationary officer days after the deadly May 13 encounter, praised the FBI and Pomona police for their "diligence and perseverance" during the investigation.
"I am pleased that Mr. Solis is now in custody and will be held accountable for his actions," Beck said.
Solis was arrested in Juarez, a border city in Chihuahua state across the Rio Grande from El Paso. Chihuahua authorities said the 27-year-old resisted arrest but officers did not have to fire their weapons when taking him into custody.
Solis told authorities that he knew his capture was coming "sooner or later," Chihuahua officials said at a news conference Tuesday.
One Chihuahua state police official said Solis was "hidden among relatives" in the El Mezquital neighborhood when he was arrested. But the official, Pablo Ernesto Rocha Acosta, didn't give specifics about what led investigators to the neighborhood, saying only that Solis' capture was the result of technology, field work and the exchange of information with U.S. authorities.
Solis was deported to the U.S. on Tuesday evening. He made an initial court appearance on Wednesday morning, but FBI officials said it was unclear when his extradition hearing would be held.
Solis, a former Marine, had spent nine months with the LAPD before authorities allege he shot Rodriguez during the predawn hours of May 13. The rookie officer didn't show up for work the next day, LAPD officials said. That night, Pomona police publicly identified him as a person of interest in the killing, circulating a flier with his photo and information about his missing car.
Authorities allege Solis ditched the Volkswagen Jetta not far from the scene of the shooting and called his father for help. Victor Solis drove with his son 800 miles to El Paso, where he told investigators he dropped the younger Solis off at a bus stop, according to court records.
But surveillance footage showed Victor Solis walking with his son across the border into Mexico, authorities said. The father was later arrested and charged with lying to federal investigators in an attempt to help hide his son. Last week, a federal judge released Victor Solis on $10,000 bond.
In the days after the shooting, Pomona police described Solis as armed and dangerous.
Times staff writers Matt Hamilton and Stephen Ceasar contributed to this report.
