Sheriff's department makes arrest in cold case

 A Brownsville man is behind bars in the 2004 murder of Tomas Hernandez Zapata, according to the Cameron County Sheriff's Department.

Jose Luis Garcia, 35, charged with murder, was arrested Wednesday afternoon at a house on East Levee and 11th streets.

The arrest took place when the sheriff's department received information that Garcia was hiding out in Brownsville, said Chief Deputy Gus Reyna.

Sheriff's deputies began investigating the cold case and, after conducting surveillance for various days, were able to arrest Garcia, Reyna said.

The sheriff's department is also working on the extradition of a second murder suspect in the death of Hernandez Zapata. The suspect, Alejandro Teran, who is known to use the alias "El Zakis," was recently arrested in Mexico City in an unrelated murder, the spokesman said. Teran also has been charged with murder in the slaying of Hernandez Zapata.

His body was found Sept. 9, 2004 on Houston Road, between North Dakota and Vermillion roads.

Investigators believe that Hernandez Zapata was kidnapped by Garcia and Teran; however, they are investigating the motive behind the slaying, Reyna said.

Hernandez Zapata's body was found with severe head trauma, five gunshot wounds to the front of his body and one shot to the back.