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Murder suspect in Wake deputy's death faces federal charge after Va. jailbreak

The FBI on Tuesday added a federal charge of escape from custody to the list of charges faced by Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo, one of two brothers linked to the shooting of Wake County Deputy Ned Byrd last summer.
Posted 2023-05-01T13:37:58+00:00 - Updated 2023-05-04T13:13:31+00:00
Man accused of murdering Wake Co. deputy fled jail in red Mustang

The FBI on Tuesday added a federal charge of escape from custody to the list of charges faced by Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo, one of two brothers linked to the shooting of Wake County Deputy Ned Byrd last summer.

Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo and his older brother, Arturo Marin-Sotelo, are charged with murdering Byrd in August, and the younger man escaped a Virginia jail over the weekend.

On Monday, just about two days after Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo made that jailbreak, his sister, Adriana Marin-Sotelo was arrested by the FBI in Guilford County. Court documents allege the siblings had been in contact to arrange for her to pick up a getaway car in High Point and to arrange a spot to meet on the night of April 29.

Two escapes from Virginia jail in 24 hours

Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo has been gone since early Sunday, according to Jerry Townsend, superintendent of the Piedmont Regional Jail, who said the jail saw two escapes that day – Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo escaped around 1 a.m. and another man, unrelated to the Byrd case but with connections to North Carolina, did so around 11:30 p.m., Townsend told WRAL News.

According to Townsend:

  • At 1:18 a.m. on Sunday, Alder Marin-Sotelo escaped Piedmont Regional Jail
  • At 11:30 p.m. on Sunday, Bruce Callahan escaped (22 hours later)
  • At 3:19 a.m. on Monday, jail staff noticed the two men missing
  • At 4 a.m. on Monday, the Prince Edward County Sheriff's Department was notified of the escapes

The FBI joined the search for Marin-Sotelo on Monday afternoon.

So far searches, including with drones and dogs, have turned up no sign of either man.

Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo, who is described as 5 feet, 6 inches tall, 150 pounds with black hair and brown eyes, was wearing a gray sweatshirt and sweatpants at the time of the escape.

Jail staff provided investigators with video that showed Marin-Sotelo and Callahan going over the facility's perimeter fence.

Investigators released photos of the vehicle they believe Marin-Sotelo was driving when he left the jail. The vehicle is a 2000 red or burgundy Ford Mustang with temporary 30-day registration tag.

They did not say how they connected the vehicle to Marin-Sotelo, who the registered owner is or how they were tracking it.

The other escapee is Bruce Carroll Callahan Jr., 44, also from North Carolina. Callahan was convicted of multiple federal drug charges. He is described as a white male, 5 feet, 10 inches tall, with black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing blue shorts and white sneakers at the time of his escape.

Townsend said jail officials believe the inmates "manipulated the locking mechanism on the rear exit door" and escaped.

Both Marin-Sotelo and Callahan were housed in a dorm-like unit with about 80 other inmates, Townsend said.

Ned Byrd murder suspect in federal custody after gun plea

Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo pleaded guilty in December 2022 to possession of a firearm by an illegal alien to avoid a federal trial, and court records show he had been held at Piedmont Regional Jail since January.

Callahan's record shows charges for trafficking large amounts of fentanyl and cocaine in Robeson County.

The jail, according to its website, houses up to 600 offenders at security levels ranging from minimum to high security. In addition to state and local offenders, inmates like Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo are held at Piedmont Regional Jail on behalf of the U.S. Marshal's Service.

Wake deputy shot in back in August 2022

Warrants obtained by WRAL News show Byrd, a Wake County deputy, was on his way to K-9 training late in the evening on Aug. 11 when he noticed a suspicious, light-colored truck. Byrd pulled over to investigate, leaving his K-9 in the car.

Surveillance video captured on Byrd's dashcam picked up the sound of six gunshots and showed a truck leaving the scene.

Authorities found Byrd outside his parked patrol vehicle on the side of Battle Bridge Road in southeastern Wake County. He had been shot four times, including three shots to the back of the head, and one shot in his ballistic vest.

Both Marin-Sotelo brothers face life in prison or the death penalty, if convicted of Byrd's murder.

In affidavits and search warrants related to the case, Arturo Marin-Sotelo has pointed the finger at his younger brother, Alder.

Arturo Marin-Sotelo told investigators that he was in a field hunting deer when he heard shots from the vicinity of where his brother was parking his truck. According to warrants released on Thursday, Arturo Marin-Sotelo told investigators that the brothers rode together to hunt deer off Battle Bridge Road, and that he was armed with an AK-47. While in the field, Arturo Marin-Sotelo saw a police vehicle pull up near the truck while his brother was still inside. Arturo Marin-Sotelo said he then heard gunshots and saw the truck drive away.

The warrants said that Arturo Marin-Sotelo claimed to have called his brother, who told him that a police officer had been shot.

Both brothers' cell phones pinged in the vicinity of the crime scene at the time, from 10:47 p.m. to 11:14 p.m. on Aug. 11.

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