Warrants issued for father, step-mom wanted in murder of 8-year-old child, trafficking of others
Search on for Benton County father, stepmother accused of murdering their son, trafficking kids
The U.S. Marshals in the Eastern District of Washington state are asking for the public’s help to find 33-year-old Edgar Salvador Casian-Garcia and 37-year-old Araceli Medina, both of whom have nationwide warrants for their arrest for murder, child rape and child abuse.
BENTON COUNTY, Wash. - The U.S. Marshals in the Eastern District of Washington state are asking for the public’s help to find 33-year-old Edgar Salvador Casian-Garcia and 37-year-old Araceli Medina, both of whom have nationwide warrants for their arrest for murder, child rape and child abuse.
The charges stem from a horrific discovery of the body of a young boy and a follow-up investigation.
On Feb. 5, 2022, hikers found human remains in rural Benton County. Through dental records, the remains were identified as 8-year-old Edgar Casian Jr. He had been reported missing in May of 2021. Pasco police say Casian Sr. and Medina claimed they hadn't seen the child since September of 2020 and didn't know where he was.
After Edgar Jr's remains were found, warrants were issued for Casian-Garcia and Medina's arrests. Casian-Garcia is Edgar's father, and Medina is his stepmother.
The couple is accused of sexually abusing and trafficking Edgar Jr. as well as a 9-year-old girl and a 3-year-old girl. Deputies say the children were found in Tijuana, Mexico last November after they escaped from a hotel where they were staying with Medina.
The U.S. Marshals are also very concerned about the welfare of another three or four children belonging to Medina that have been unaccounted for.
Deputies say they want to make sure the kids are safe before they meet the same fate as little Edgar Jr.
The U.S. Marshals strongly believe that there are people who can provide information to help them locate the couple. It's believed Casian-Garcia and Medina fled to Nayarit or Sinaloa, Mexico or possibly Canada.
Any information you can provide will be kept anonymous.
Deputies say the fugitives have made several threats against friends and family in an attempt to intimidate them to keep them from cooperating with law enforcement.
If you have any information on this case or to help find either of the suspects, please contact Deputy Sanchez at (509) 713-9790 or Pasco PD Detective Davis (509) 545-3515. You can also email Isaac.Sanchez@usdoj.gov or Det. Davis at davisj@pasco-wa.gov and reference Pasco PD case #21-15039.