Illinois
‘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.
CENTRALIA, Ill. – An investigation is underway after multiple people were shot Sunday in Centralia, Illinois, according to a report from WFCN News in southern Illinois.
FOX 2 has confirmed the Illinois State Police is investigating a shooting and taking over the investigation, but ISP could not confirm many further details as of 9 p.m. Sunday.
“The investigation is in its infancy and to protect the integrity of the investigation, no additional details will be released at this time,” ISP said in a statement to FOX 2.
According to WFCN News, the shooting happened around 5 p.m. near the 900 block of East Kell Street in Centralia. Multiple law enforcement agencies have since responded to scene and multiple victims are hospitalized, according to the report.
It’s unclear how many people may have been injured and what led up to the shooting.
Centralia, Illinois is about 70 miles, or just over an hour, east of St. Louis.
This is a developing story. FOX 2 will update as more information becomes available.
The National Weather Service has teams of storm surveryors in the field April 18 investigating several reports of severe storms and tornado touch downs across eastern Iowa, northwest Illinois and northeast Missouri.
According to the weather service’s website, windgusts of up to 60 to 70 mph along with teacup-sized hail and several tornadoes were reported April 17.
Many homes and outbuildings were damaged, trees were uprooted and power lines were downed in Lena, Illinois, where the most significant damage occurred, the site pointed out.
Very strong winds also were reported near Washington, Iowa, and Colmar, Illinois, where several outbuildings and grain bins were destroyed.
The weather service received reports of confirmed and possible tornadoes in the areas of Lena, Pecatonica, Shirland, Rockton, Roscoe and Capron.
The teams will be assessing damage this weekend into next week along with county emergency management teams to determine what types of storms occurred and their paths.
Dozens of power outages were reported, as well.
As of the afternoon of April 18, ComEd was reporting 85 active power outages across northern Illinois, down from 241 on April 17, and 6,751 customers affected, down from more than 18,000.
The bulk of those outages and the most customers impacted are concentrated in Jo Daviess and Stephenson counties.
Freeze Watch
from MON 12:00 AM CDT until MON 9:00 AM CDT, Lake County, Kankakee County, La Salle County, DuPage County, Northern Will County, DeKalb County, Southern Will County, Kendall County, Southern Cook County, Northern Cook County, Grundy County, Eastern Will County, Kane County, McHenry County, Lake County, Newton County, Jasper County, Porter County
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