After an eight-year manhunt, an arrest has been made in the cold case murder of 25-year-old Evin Paulos, who was found stabbed to death near Pinnacle Peak and Cave Creek Road in North Phoenix back in June 2017, FOX 10 Phoenix reports. Phoenix Police Department, with assistance from U.S. Marshals, apprehended 34-year-old Michael Anthony Arredondo in Mexico last week; Arredondo was extradited to the United States and, according to ABC15, has confessed to the murder of his one-time neighbor after being interviewed in San Diego.
Pivotal in the case's resolution was a tip from a stranger in Mexico who came across a GoFundMe page set up by the victim's family and reached out to them with information leading to the indictment of Arredondo, as Evin's sister, Eviein Paulos, wistfully conveyed during a press conference covered by FOX 10 Phoenix, she alongside Detective Dominick Roestenberg shared the long-awaited news, "Yeah both my brothers, this is their picture, its been faded out, it's been eight years," showing the effects of time on not just the physical mementos but also the weight duly carried by those seeking justice.
Authorities revealed the grim details of the crime; Arredondo allegedly stabbed Paulos some 30 times in what was described as a violent rage before absconding first to California, where his vehicle was last spotted in Anaheim, then disappearing until his recent capture, FOX 10 Phoenix disclosed. Evin's sister, effusing a mixture of faith and resignation, told the same source, "You know, he gave my brother a one-way ticket to heaven so, hey, I’m not mad at that; I’m just disappointed in how humanity is. At least we’re a little bit at peace. I can let go of the anger that I’ve had for so long and just try to concentrate on life."
Now, with Arredondo in custody, held on a $750,000 bond, the Paulos family's eight-year ordeal marked by the tragic loss of Evin and compounded by the deaths of their mother and a second brother within the same timeframe seems approaching a resolution, as Detective Roestenberg from Phoenix PD steadfastly affirmed to FOX 10 Phoenix, "Even with the passage of time we're still looking for you, we're still hunting you down, and that eventually justice is going to take its course." This case stands as a testament to the relentless pursuit of justice and the unanticipated paths that often lead to the closure of such painfully prolonged chapters.
