A convicted murderer who escaped custody in Southern California late last year and who is now accused of killing a Mexican police officer in an elite unit known as “the Gringo Hunters” was arrested last week in Tijuana, according to media reports.
Cesar Hernandez, 35, a United States citizen, was convicted in June 2019 of killing a man outside of a Southeast Los Angeles bar and sentenced to 80 years to life with the possibility of parole.
On Dec. 2, 2024, he escaped custody of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation shortly before arriving at the Kern County Superior Courthouse in Delano where he was expected to enter a no-contest plea for manufacturing a weapon in his cell, a “third strike” that could’ve resulted in him losing any chance of parole.
While CDCR officials would neither confirm nor deny it, there were some reports suggesting Hernandez used a makeshift key to shed his handcuffs and shackles during the drive to the courthouse.
-
Cesar Hernandez seen in the custody of Mexican police after his arrest on April 17, 2025. (Fiscalía General Del Estado De Baja California) -
Video obtained by KGET shows a prison guard chasing after escaped murderer Cesar Hernandez on Dec. 2, 2024 in Delano. Hernandez’s mug shot from the California Department of Corrections is included. -
Video obtained by KGET shows a prison guard chasing after escaped murderer Cesar Hernandez on Dec. 2, 2024 in Delano. -
Video obtained by KGET shows a prison guard chasing after escaped murderer Cesar Hernandez on Dec. 2, 2024 in Delano. -
Video obtained by KGET shows a prison guard chasing after escaped murderer Cesar Hernandez on Dec. 2, 2024 in Delano.
If accurate, the claim answers a question posed by many after exclusive video obtained by KTLA sister station KGET showed the unshackled inmate easily outrunning a guard.
Despite a significant manhunt, the 35-year-old made it all the way to Mexico.
On April 9, the “Gringo Hunters,” a Mexican police unit formed to cooperate with U.S. authorities in the apprehension of fugitives who cross the border, conducted an operation to capture Hernandez in the border town of Tijuana, Reuters reported.
Allegedly dressed as a cleaner, the 35-year-old opened fire on the Mexican police unit, striking and killing 33-year-old Abigail Esparza Reyes, the commander of the unit, and was able to escape.
A little more than a week later, on April 17, the 35-year-old fugitive killer was located and successfully arrested by Mexican authorities in Tijuana, the Los Angeles Times reported.
It’s unclear if Hernandez will face prosecution in Mexico, California or both.