A Vancouver father accused of kidnapping and killing his 2-year-old child over the weekend, prompting a multi-agency investigation, appeared Monday morning in Clark County Superior Court on a fugitive from justice warrant.
Vancouver police arrested Gustavo Enrique Villalobos Carranza, 31, early Sunday morning on suspicion of first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping and unlawful use of a weapon. The arrest warrant, citing the charges, is for Multnomah County Circuit Court in Oregon.
Investigators initially believed the child was killed in Gresham, Ore., but the Portland Police Bureau said Monday that investigators have since determined the homicide occurred in Portland.
At Monday’s hearing, Villalobos Carranza, with the assistance of a court-appointed attorney and Spanish interpreter, admitted his identity and waived extradition, meaning he will voluntarily return to Multnomah County. In the meantime, he is being held without bail at the Clark County Jail.
Vancouver police had responded around 12:50 a.m. Sunday to a report of threats. The child’s mother said that the father picked up the toddler Saturday evening and later called her making threats to harm the child, according to a Sunday bulletin from the police department.
The department issued an alert around 2:30 a.m. requesting help in locating a vehicle involved in the alleged kidnapping — described as a silver 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander with Washington license plates. Police warned people not to approach the vehicle if it was spotted.
Police later canceled the alert when they were able to contact Villalobos Carranza, who agreed to turn himself in. He was taken into custody around 4:15 a.m. near Northeast Fourth Plain Boulevard and 57th Avenue in central Vancouver. The child was found dead, the police statement said.
Portland Police Bureau homicide detectives have responded to assist with the investigation.
Authorities have not released the child’s name. A spokesperson for the Portland Police Bureau said Monday that the medical examiner must finish the autopsy and provide cause of death and identification. No further information was available.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact Detectives Jeff Sharp at jeff.sharp@portlandoregon.gov or Mike Jones at michael.jones@portlandoregon.gov.
Reporter Becca Robbins contributed to this story.
