CALDWELL, Idaho — The Canyon County Sheriff's Office held a news conference Friday about the extradition of Erasmo Diaz, who is now in the custody of CCSO.
Diaz was booked into the Canyon County Jail Thursday night on the following charges:
- Murder in the Second Degree
- Desertion of a Child
- Injury to Children
- Destruction, Alteration or Concealment of Evidence
- Use of a Firearm or Deadly Weapon During the Commission of a Crime
"This is clearly, unequivocally, a domestic violence case, and a person lost their life because of it," said Kieran Donahue, Canyon County Sheriff. "And not only did that woman lose her life, her children have been affected, not since just that night, but for the rest of their entire lives."
Related: Idaho man accused of killing his wife arrested in Mexico
Diaz was arrested in Mexico on June 26, 2021, by Mexican Federales, according to a news release. The United States Marshals Service helped with the arrest.
The return to CCSO custody ends a six-year manhunt by law enforcement. Police say Diaz has been wanted since 2015 for the domestic violence homicide of Amparo Godinez-Sanchez, who he allegedly shot and killed in front of their two children.
"I'm so proud of this agency, all of our partners, United States Marshals Service, the prosecuting attorney's office, and many others, that no one ever veered off course," said Donahue. "We knew that this day would come, and we have been patient and we have been fighting to get here ever since."
As Idaho News 6 previously reported, Diaz was arrested in July 2008 after pushing and hitting Godinez-Sanchez during an argument. He was charged with three felony counts of aggravated battery and later plead guilty and was sentenced to 90 days in jail and placed on probation for a year.
