Fugitive Suspect Held in 2005 Homicide

November 2, 2009

At a bail review hearing held this morning in the District Court for Howard County, a 36-year-old former Columbia man was ordered held without bond for the robbery-murder of a West Friendship man whose body was discovered at his residence in the 13000 block of Frederick Road on October 19, 2005.

Howard County police identified Joel Nunez Valles as the suspect in the murder of Juan Miguel Gonzalez, who was later identified through FBI fingerprint identification as Abolinar Avila. An autopsy revealed that Avila, 51, died as a result of stabbing wounds to his body.

At this morning’s hearing, Assistant State’s Attorney Laurie Haas told Judge Mary C. Reese that within 48 hours of the homicide, Valles received help “from family and friends in the area” to flee to Chihuahua, Mexico. Valles was recently extradited to Maryland after it was determined that he was being held in a Mexican jail on an unrelated charge. Because of his former fugitive status, Haas told the court that the State of Maryland deemed Valles to be a flight risk and asked that he be held without bond.