PAROLE PAROLE BOARD BEFORE HIS JULY 14TH HEARING. THE SUSPECT IN A MURDER IN SACRAMENTO NEARLY NINE YEARS AGO, IS FINALLY IN U.S. CUSTODY. INVESTIGATORS SAY JOSE NUNEZ KILLED HIS GIRLFRIEND, EMILIANA QUINTERO RAMOS, BACK IN SEPTEMBER OF 2017. HER BODY WAS LATER FOUND NEAR ISLETON LAST AUGUST. A TIP LED TO NUNEZ’S ARREST IN NORTH CENTRAL MEXICO. THE FB
FBI: Man captured in Mexico appears in Sacramento court for girlfriend’s 2017 murder
Updated: 8:08 AM PDT Jul 8, 2026
A Mexican national accused of killing his girlfriend and leaving her body in the Sacramento River before fleeing the country appeared in court this week after being on the run for years, the FBI said.Jose Guadalupe Lopez Nunez, 49, faces a murder charge and is ineligible for bail, Sacramento County jail records show.The FBI said an angler found the body of Emelina Quintero-Ramos, who was Lopez Nunez’s girlfriend, in the Sacramento River near Isleton on Sept. 4, 2017. Lopez Nunez is believed to have hidden her body in the river.On Oct. 16, 2017, a felony warrant for Lopez Nunez’s arrest was issued, and the FBI said on Oct. 24 of that same month, a federal arrest warrant was issued after Lopez Nunez fled the country.FBI officials then issued a wanted poster and launched an international campaign to find and arrest him. It would not be until Aug. 31, 2025, that law enforcement captured Lopez Nunez near Mezquital del Oro, Zacatecas, Mexico, after receiving a tip about his location.Agents then extradited Lopez Nunez to Sacramento on July 2 of this month, the FBI said. He made his first court appearance on Tuesday.Brian Tosh, the FBI Sacramento acting special agent in charge, said in a news release that officials hope Lopez Nunez’s “arrest offers some relief to the family of Emelina Quintero-Ramos after many years of waiting for prosecution.”The search involved working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California, the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office and Interpol.“The FBI proudly partners with domestic and international partners across the globe to ensure fugitives have nowhere to hide,” Tosh said.Jail records show Lopez Nunez’s next court date is at 8:30 a.m. on July 23.See news happening? Send us your photos or videos if it’s safe to do so at kcra.com/upload.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel | Make KCRA a preferred news source in Google
A Mexican national accused of killing his girlfriend and leaving her body in the Sacramento River before fleeing the country appeared in court this week after being on the run for years, the FBI said.
Jose Guadalupe Lopez Nunez, 49, faces a murder charge and is ineligible for bail, Sacramento County jail records show.
The FBI said an angler found the body of Emelina Quintero-Ramos, who was Lopez Nunez’s girlfriend, in the Sacramento River near Isleton on Sept. 4, 2017. Lopez Nunez is believed to have hidden her body in the river.
On Oct. 16, 2017, a felony warrant for Lopez Nunez’s arrest was issued, and the FBI said on Oct. 24 of that same month, a federal arrest warrant was issued after Lopez Nunez fled the country.
FBI officials then issued a wanted poster and launched an international campaign to find and arrest him. It would not be until Aug. 31, 2025, that law enforcement captured Lopez Nunez near Mezquital del Oro, Zacatecas, Mexico, after receiving a tip about his location.
Agents then extradited Lopez Nunez to Sacramento on July 2 of this month, the FBI said. He made his first court appearance on Tuesday.
Brian Tosh, the FBI Sacramento acting special agent in charge, said in a news release that officials hope Lopez Nunez’s “arrest offers some relief to the family of Emelina Quintero-Ramos after many years of waiting for prosecution.”
The search involved working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California, the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office and Interpol.
“The FBI proudly partners with domestic and international partners across the globe to ensure fugitives have nowhere to hide,” Tosh said.
Jail records show Lopez Nunez’s next court date is at 8:30 a.m. on July 23.
See news happening? Send us your photos or videos if it’s safe to do so at kcra.com/upload.
See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel | Make KCRA a preferred news source in Google