An online date turned into a manhunt after police found an Arizona teenage girl stabbed to death.
Police apprehended Randal Basilio Santillan, 27, in Mississippi, following a multi-state manhunt in connection with the murder of Yessenia Gabriella Norman, 18, according to KTUU.
Authorities arrested Santillan around 7 a.m. Friday in Biloxi. He faces charges of first-degree murder and kidnapping.
According to authorities, the investigation began on January 28 when Tolleson police in Arizona discovered Norman’s body inside an apartment leased to Santillan near 91st Avenue and Interstate 10. Officers found the victim stabbed 27 times, according to FOX 10.
Detectives determined that Norman and Santillan had met on the dating app and exchanged multiple text messages on January 15, before Norman left her transitional housing in Phoenix to meet him.
Security footage from a doorbell camera captured the teen leaving her residence that evening, carrying only her purse. She was never seen alive again.
Police believe Norman died in the early morning hours of January 16. Her roommate reported her missing on January 19.
Friends and family told investigators that Norman had been excited to begin classes at Glendale Community College later that week, ABC 15 reported.
Authorities utilized license plate reader technology to trace Santillan’s vehicle before locating him in Mississippi.
The arrest was a coordinated effort involving the Tolleson Police Department, the FBI, the Arizona Department of Public Safety, and the Biloxi Police Department. FBI agents monitored Santillan in Biloxi before local officers moved in to make the arrest.
Santillan is currently being held at the Harrison County Adult Detention Center in Mississippi, awaiting extradition to Arizona to face charges, according to KTUU.
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[Feature Photo: Yessenia Gabriella Norman/X]
