Dunnigan murder suspect transported back to Yolo County after serving unrelated sentence in Mexico
DUNNIGAN — A man suspected of stabbing another man to death following a road rage incident in rural Yolo County more than a decade ago is in custody after serving a sentence for an unrelated arrest in Mexico, authorities said Monday.
The stabbing occurred on July 7, 2010, along County Road 99W in the small town of Dunnigan, which is north of Woodland.
The Yolo County Sheriff's Office said deputies initially responded to a vehicle crash. When they arrived, they located a man with multiple stab wounds.
Investigators learned the stabbing suspect -- identified not long after as Guillermo Perez Avina, 37 -- allegedly got out of his vehicle following a road rage incident and attacked the victim. Avina had already left the scene and investigators determined he had fled to Mexico. In November 2010, the FBI obtained a federal warrant for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, the sheriff's office said.
It wasn't until January 2016 that Avina was arrested on unrelated charges in Guadalajara, Jalisco. While he was in custody, authorities were able to positively identify Avina as the suspect in the Dunnigan case.
According to the sheriff's office, FBI agents escorted Avina on a flight to Sacramento International Airport on November 18, 2022 — just over 12 years after the federal warrant was obtained.
Avina is currently in custody at the Yolo County Detention Center awaiting prosecution. He is set to appear in court on Tuesday.