Hells Angels member extradited to Arizona in connection to 2001 murder
Jul 18, 2018, 8:34 PM | Updated: Jul 19, 2018, 11:02 am
PHOENIX — A member of Hells Angels and one of the nation’s most-wanted fugitives was behind bars in Maricopa County this week after being on the run for years.
Paul Eischeid was extradited to the U.S. after being arrested in Argentina in connection to the 2001 murder of Cynthia Garcia.
Eischeid, 46, was arrested in 2003 after being indicted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for drug trafficking and RICO violations, including counts of kidnapping and homicide, stemming from Garcia’s death.
He was subsequently released on his own recognizance with electronic monitoring after the arrest, but removed the monitoring bracelet and fled the country.
While he was on the run, Eischeid allegedly obtained a fake passport and a new identity that he used to travel, work and avoid detection. He also changed his appearance and altered a tattoo.
The former stockbroker was apprehended in Buenos Aires in 2011 and would spend the next seven years fighting his extradition back to the U.S.
However, Eischeid exhausted all of his appeals in the Argentinian government’s legal system last month, leading to his extradition this week. He was returned to the U.S. on Tuesday.
According to ABC 15, officials said Eischeid and fellow gang member Kevin J. Augustiniak were charged with severely beating Garcia, putting her in the trunk of a car and partially decapitating her after stabbing her nearly 30 times in the desert.
Eischeid is being held in the Maricopa County Jail, U.S. Marshal David Gonzales said in a statement.
“Eischeid’s arrest in Buenos Aires and seven year extradition process would not have been successful without the coordination and cooperation of our local, state, federal, and international partners,” Gonzales said.
“I hope that the children of Cynthia Garcia are able to close this chapter of the nightmare they have been living since their mother was murdered and Eischeid cut off his ankle monitor and fled the country.”
Eischeid was added to the U.S. Marshals’ Most Wanted list in 2007. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and Arizona Department of Public Safety were among the agencies that assisted in the case.
