A man accused of nearly beating a San Bernardino County grandmother to death with a baseball bat has been arrested in Oklahoma after nearly two months on the run.
The Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office arrested Erik Eduardo Navarro, 26, of Orange County, on unrelated traffic charges and booked him into jail.
After learning that Navarro was in custody, California investigators secured his extradition and flew to Oklahoma. They took custody of him on Tuesday.
“Working in coordination with the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office and the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office, detectives obtained an extradition warrant,” the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said.
Investigators allege Navarro took advantage of 71-year-old Therese Garcia’s generosity earlier this year after she welcomed him into her Crestline home.
Navarro reportedly told Garcia he needed somewhere to stay before a job interview, prompting her to offer him a place in her home.
The grandmother cooked for him each night and initially came to view him as a “sweet kid” who had fallen on hard times.
According to Garcia’s family, Navarro soon began “making demands and taking over her home.” When Garcia became frustrated with his behavior and asked him to leave on Aug. 25, he allegedly responded with extreme violence.
Navarro allegedly obtained a metal baseball bat and attacked Garcia while she was sleeping.
Her family said the beating left her drifting in and out of consciousness and in need of immediate medical attention.
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“He just kept beating her until he finally thought she was dead,” her daughter, Abbie Garcia, told CBS News.
The family alleges that Navarro fled with Garcia’s credit cards, keys, phone, and e-bike.
The San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department said Garcia suffered “a laceration to her forehead, cut eyebrow, swollen hands, and swollen orbital area to the point she was unable to clearly see.”
She also spent “days” vomiting blood after the alleged attack. Her family launched a GoFundMe campaign to help cover her medical expenses and said she was close to death.
Navarro is being held pending prosecution on charges of battery with serious injury, elder abuse likely to produce great bodily injury or death, assault with a deadly weapon, robbery, and damaging a wireless communication device to prevent help. He was booked into the West Valley Detention Center.
Garcia’s daughter said her mother did nothing to deserve the alleged attack.
“My mom didn’t deserve this,” Abbie said. “She was simply trying to help someone she believed was in need, something she has always done throughout her life. This time, her kindness was met with unimaginable violence.”
Jail records show Navarro’s bail has been set at $250,000, with a court appearance scheduled for Friday.