This photo provided by the US Marshals Service shows Wu Chen after his arrest by police in Miami Beach, South Florida, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2022. The man has been implicated in the murder of four Asian men at a marijuana farm in Oklahoma, according to authorities. (US Federal Marshal Service via Associated Press)
This photo provided by the US Marshals Service shows Wu Chen after his arrest by police in Miami Beach, South Florida, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2022. The man has been implicated in the murder of four Asian men at a marijuana farm in Oklahoma, according to authorities. (US Federal Marshal Service via Associated Press)
An Asian man involved in the killing of four people at an Oklahoma marijuana farm was captured in South Florida Tuesday afternoon, police announced.
The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) said in a statement posted on its Facebook page that Wu Chen was arrested by Miami Beach police just before 4 p.m. local time without incident and taken to the Miami-Dade County Detention Center. were taken.
The arrest “came after a license plate reader detected the vehicle he was driving,” it added. The suspect will be charged with murder and use of a firearm to kill and could be extradited to Oklahoma.
OSBI also released a photo provided by federal marshals, of a man sitting without shoes with his hands tied behind his back.
Authorities said the victims – three men and a woman, all Chinese nationals – were “killed” on a 10-acre (4 ha) property west of Hennessey, about 55 miles (90 km) northwest of Oklahoma City. A fifth victim, a Chinese national, was also injured and taken to a hospital in Oklahoma City.
Police said the victims have not yet been publicly identified and their families have not been informed of what happened “due to the strong language barrier”.
Authorities previously said they have located a suspect and would not release his name at this time to avoid putting others at risk.
“The suspect was inside a building at the site for some time before the hanging began,” OSBI said in a statement Tuesday. “Based on the investigation conducted so far, what happened does not appear to be an accidental incident.”
OSBI Capt. Stan Florence said earlier in the day that police believed the suspect knew the victims, who were found dead Sunday night.
“Everyone knew each other,” Florence said. “I don’t know if they are related or were co-workers, but we almost certainly believe that all of these people knew each other.”
Florence said the Kingfisher County Sheriff’s Office was the first to dispatch deputies to the location after receiving information about a hostage situation at the farm and requested state police assistance.
“There is a lot to explain in this case,” he added. “It will take us some time to process it.”
“The case is being investigated as a quadruple murder. The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Hazardous Substances Control also launched an investigation.
The agency has focused in recent years on combating the illegal cultivation and trafficking of marijuana destined for the black market. But agency spokesman Mark Woodward said Tuesday it was too early to say whether that was the focus of the current investigation.
