A man accused of killing two strangers in Texas and kidnapping a third was living in the US illegally and had been deported three times back to Mexico, immigration officials revealed on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Dallas County jail officials discovered the suspect initially identified as Silvestre Franco-Luviano was using one of his eight aliases.
The 40-year-old suspect's true identity is Juan Navarro Rios, said Dallas County sheriff's spokeswoman Melinda Urbina.
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| This jail booking photo provided by the Dallas County Sheriff's Department shows Juan Navarro Rios on September 28, 2016. |
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| Navarro Rios is suspected of shooting Ruben Moreno in his car in southeastern Dallas and Welton Betts at a gas station in the Dallas suburb of Cedar Hill. |
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| Standoff ends: A SWAT team apprehended Navarro Rios outside an apartment complex in suburban Dallas Tuesday evening. |
The false identity was discovered as Navarro Rios was being booked into the Dallas County jail after his transfer from the Williamson County Jail in Georgetown.
He is accused of gunning down 23-year-old motorist Ruben Moreno in Dallas and 44-year-old Welton Betts at a gas station in nearby Cedar Hill in the course of a two-day rampage. Police have not released a motive for either killing, both of which occurred on Sunday night.
Criminal records had identified Navarro Rios over the years by some variation of Silvestre Franco-Luviano.
He was initially deported in June 1996 for a felony conviction, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman Carl Rusnok said Wednesday.
ICE declined to say what the felony conviction was, but court records show the Mexican national had a 1995 assault conviction in Dallas and a 1996 conviction for hindering prosecution.
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| Ruben Moreno, who was shot dead on Sunday. |
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| Welton Betts, who was killed on Sunday. |
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| Moreno was sitting in his Hummer (pictured) when he was shot to death during the crime spree. |
Navarro Rios illegally returned to the US some time later and was again deported in October 2009 for re-entering by falsely claiming US citizenship, Rusnok said.
He again came back into the US and was prosecuted on vehicle burglary charges in Georgetown, Texas, in 2010 and 2011. He was deported in March 2014 after completing an eight-month prison sentence for re-entry after deportation, according to a statement Wednesday from ICE.
Documents obtained by Fox 4 News indicate that the illegal immigrant used a fake passport to travel between Mexico and the US 35 times.
Navarro Rios was arrested Tuesday after a standoff with the Lone Star Fugitive Task Force at his relatives' apartment in Georgetown, about 25 miles north of Austin, according to police.
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| Second crime scene: Welton Betts was pumping gas at this Texaco gas station when Navarro Rios allegedly shot him. |
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| The suspect allegedly carjacked Bett's vehicle after forcing his wife, Gail (right), out of the passenger seat at gunpoint. |
Austin-based writer Chris Walker posted video clips of the dramatic takedown, in which stun grenades were used, and tweeted: 'Suspect started fire and kicked hole through wall of adjoining apartment.'
He was transferred Wednesday from the Williamson County jail to the Dallas County jail after his arrest on a murder warrant in the death of Ruben Moreno, who was sitting in his Hummer when he was shot.
He's also a suspect in the carjacking death of Welton Betts, who was killed at a Texaco gas station in the suburb of Cedar Hill. Police say the gunman then fled in the victim's car after forcing his wife Gail out of the vehicle at gunpoint.
Georgetown Police Chief Wayne Nero said Navarro Rios was also a suspect in the abduction and robbery of a man who was doing landscaping work outside a Georgetown department store on Monday.
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| Alien: Officials say Navarro Rios, pictured in handcuffs after his arrest, was living in the US illegally and had been deported three times back to Mexico. |
The victim of the kidnapping was later found unharmed at a gas station a mile away.
At 5pm on Tuesday, police got a tip that Navarro Rios was holed up in his sister's apartment in Georgetown and sent in a SWAT team to apprehend him.
According to authorities, the fugitive set fire to his sister's home and broke through a wall to the unit next door. He was tackled and arrested as he ran out of the Parkview Place Apartments at around 7.30pm.
Navarro Rios is being held in Dallas County jail on $250,000 bond. ICE placed an immigration detainer on the suspect immediately after his arrest, meaning the agency is asking that he not be released.
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