‘Most Wanted’ fugitive arrested in Mexico in Illinois attorney’s 2016 strangling death

John Panaligan, 57, was arrested Monday in Tepic, Mexico, ending a nearly eight-year manhunt after attorney Victor Patel was strangled in his office. Patel was representing clients suing Panaligan.

Police in Mexico have arrested a man in connection with the strangling death of an Illinois attorney in 2016, U.S. officials announced Wednesday.

John Panaligan, 57, was arrested Monday in Tepic, Mexico, ending a nearly eight-year manhunt, the U.S. Marshals Service said in a news release.

Panaligan, who made the 15 Most Wanted fugitives list in 2020, was deported back to the U.S. on Tuesday, the service confirmed.

Panaligan is accused of killing attorney Victor Jigar Patel, 36, in his Northbrook, Illinois, office on Dec. 7, 2016. At the time Patel was representing clients who were suing Panaligan in civil court, according to the news release.

“I hope this arrest brings some measure of comfort to the Patel family and serves as a stark reminder to fugitives from justice that there is no place to hide,” Marshals Service Director Ronald Davis said in a statement.

USA TODAY was unable to reach an attorney for Panaligan for comment.

Panaligan allegedly scheduled appointment to lure Patel

The Marshals Service allege that Panaligan scheduled an appointment under an alias to make an appointment with Patel at his law office.

Security cameras captured Panaligan wearing a disguise upon arrival before allegedly killing the attorney in his office, the Marshals Service says. Evidence collected by authorities led to him being the lead suspect in the murder investigation, according to U.S. Marshall Service.

Authorities detained Panaligan at the Canadian border two days later for allegedly attempting to smuggle a firearm into Canada. However, he was allowed to return to the U.S. so the Northbrook Police Department could interview him in the investigation into Patel’s death.

On Feb. 8, 2017, a warrant for Panaligan’s arrest was filed so he could be charged for first-degree murder but he presumably fled to Mexico before he authorities could find him.

On Nov. 23, 2020, the U.S. Marshals Service placed him on its 15 Most Wanted, offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information that led to his capture, according to the service. Speculation into Panaligan’s whereabouts were complicated due to his dual citizenship between the U.S. and the Republic of the Philippines.