A man wanted in New Orleans for second-degree murder was tracked down and arrested in Federal Way on Thursday, after fleeing more than 2,000 miles from Louisiana before being arrested near the Federal Way aquatic center by a federal fugitive task force and Seattle police SWAT officers. Terrance Carter, 31, tried to run when authorities closed in but ultimately surrendered without further incident.
According to the Federal Way Mirror, officers with the U.S. Marshals Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force arrested Carter on Sept. 17 in the 900 block of Southwest Campus Drive, an area just northwest of the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center. Seattle Police Department SWAT officers assisted in the operation and ultimately took Carter into custody, as reported by kentreporter.com.
Carter was wanted on a felony warrant for second-degree murder, according to the New Orleans Police Department. The warrant traces back to a shooting on Aug. 23 in New Orleans that left 29-year-old Kevionte Davis dead. Investigators there identified Carter as the shooter and issued the arrest warrant on Sept. 3, per the same account.
How the Manhunt Reached Washington State
New Orleans police detectives worked alongside the U.S. Marshals New Orleans Task Force to track Carter's movements after determining he had left Louisiana for the greater Seattle area. A lead was then routed to the Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force, which set up the operation that ended in his arrest outside the Federal Way aquatic center. The task force is a multi-agency partnership drawing federal, state and local law enforcement officers from Washington, Oregon and Alaska, the outlet notes.
The Marshals-led partnership's primary mission is to locate, apprehend and return the most violent and egregious federal and state fugitives to the justice system, per the same account. Carter had also been linked to a 2015 incident in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, in which shots were fired at three sheriff's deputies, though the report does not detail the outcome of that earlier case.
Suspect Now Held Ahead of Extradition
Following his arrest, Carter was transported to the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent, where he will remain in custody while awaiting extradition back to New Orleans to face the murder charge. Acting U.S. Marshal Donrien Stephens credited the coordination between local and federal partners for the successful capture, saying that “Successful fugitive apprehensions like this are made possible through strong partnerships with our local and federal law enforcement partners.” Stephens specifically thanked the Seattle Police Department SWAT team and the New Orleans partners for their teamwork and commitment to bringing the suspect into custody, according to the report.
