Man accused of killing Anaheim co-worker nearly two decades ago arrested in Texas

A man accused of shooting an Anaheim co-worker to death nearly 19 years ago has been arrested and brought back to Orange County after police say he was discovered living under an assumed name in Texas.

Leopoldo Vargas Serano, now 47, spent nearly two decades as a fugitive, charged with murder in connection to the 2000 killing of 21-year-old Luis Garcia Bucio, authorities said.

At around 2 p.m. on Oct. 16, 2000, officers responded to reports of a shooting in front of a business in the 1600 block of North Miller Street and discovered Bucio’s body.

Police allege that Serrano shot Bucio to death during an argument. Within weeks, a murder charge against Serrano was filed in Orange County Superior Court and an arrest warrant was issued.

But authorities were unable to locate him.

Earlier this year, investigators with the Anaheim Police Department’s cold-case homicide unit and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office “developed information” that Serrano was living under a different name in Houston, Texas, according to a police statement.

On Sept. 11, Anaheim detectives served a search warrant at Serrano’s Houston home, while Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents took him into custody on suspicion of unlawfully entering the country.

Following the arrest, the DA’s Rapid DNA unit confirmed that the man they had taken into custody was indeed Serrano, according to the police statement.

On Thursday, U.S. Marshals turned over custody of Serrano to Anaheim detectives, who have transported him back to Orange County to be held in lieu of $1 million bail.