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FBI
Yaser Abdel Said, 63, was wanted by the FBI in connection with the murder of his daughters for 12 years
A taxi driver wanted on suspicion of murdering his young daughters has been arrested on the run after 12 years.
An order for the arrest of Yaser Abdel Said was issued the day after the shootings in 2008 of his daughters, Sarah Yaser Said, 17, and Amina Yaser Said, 18.
The Egyptian-born suspect was placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives in 2014.
He was jailed for nearly seven years in Justin, Texas, with two siblings arrested.
The 63-year-old will soon be transferred to Dallas County, the FBI’s Dallas department said in a statement released Wednesday.
“The FBI-led Dallas Task Force on Violent Crimes has worked tirelessly to find Yaser Abdel Said,” said FBI Dallas Special Agent Matthew DeSarno. “These experienced investigators gave up their quest to never find him and agreed to never forget the young victims in this case.”
The girls’ mother, Patricia Owens, said she was happy to hear of the arrest, telling local media: “Now the girls can rest in peace.”
The FBI also announced two other arrests, CBS DFW reported. Islam Said, the suspect’s son, and Yassim Said, the suspect’s brother, are both facing charges of having a refugee.
Where is Said being accused of?
A murder investigation was opened on January 1, 2008 after Amina and Sarah were found dead.
On that day, the suspect took Amina and Sarah for a ride in his taxi cab, preventing them from taking her for a meal, the FBI claims.
The FBI says he drove her to Irving, Texas, where he allegedly shot both girls in the taxi cab. They both died from multiple gunshot wounds.
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FBI
Yaser Abdel Said is accused of shooting his daughters in his taxi on New Year’s Day
Before her death, a family member told police that the suspect had threatened “bodily harm” against Sarah to go on a date with a non-Muslim, according to CBS News.
The sisters’ great-aunt, Gail Gattrell, described her death as a so-called “honor killings”.
The murder of a family member who is considered a disgrace to the family is sometimes described as an “honor killing” – but critics claim it is an indecent way to describe such deaths.
The Irving Police Department has been investigating the deaths of Amina and Sarah, and on January 2, 2008, a multiple head murder warrant was issued for the arrest of Yaser Abdel Said.
Since then, local detectives and the FBI have been “relentlessly pursuing direction for Amina and Sarah,” said Irving police chief Jeff Spivey.
On August 21, 2008, a federal order for illegal flight to prevent prosecution was issued by a district court in Texas.
FBI agents continued to pursue the suspect and, after “12 years of frustration and dead ducks,” finally caught him Wednesday.
Mr DeSarno said his capture and arrest “would bring us one step closer to justice for Amina and Sarah”.
In a statement, the girls’ family said the announcement of the suspect’s arrest had “brought tears of exaltation, and cries of triumph for us tonight”.
The statement said the family was “relieved to finally begin the chapter on justice” after “bright and promising lives were denied”.
