A California Man Is Extradited to El Salvador to Face a Murder Charge, the First Time the U.S. Has Handed Over a U.S. Citizen to That Country
The Justice Department says Michael Castillo Murga, 27, a dual citizen, is accused in the 2019 killing of the mother of his toddler. A judge rejected his challenge last year. The charges are allegations until a Salvadoran court rules.
The United States has, for the first time, surrendered one of its own citizens to El Salvador for prosecution, the Justice Department says, according to Fox News.
The case. Michael Alejandro Castillo Murga, 27, of Beaumont, California, holds both U.S. and Salvadoran citizenship. U.S. Marshals handed him to Salvadoran authorities on Wednesday to face charges of aggravated femicide and imperfect homicide in a 2019 killing, DOJ announced Thursday.
The allegations. Salvadoran authorities say he picked up Melvi Fernanda Najera Quezada, 23, and their young son from her mother's home on Jan. 31, 2019, supposedly so they could begin living together. Investigators allege he killed her instead and left the boy near her body, which was found near a highway the next day. DOJ says an autopsy found she died of severe bleeding from cuts to her neck and other wounds made with a plastic knife. Farmworkers found the boy, who was under 2, several days later in a rugged area. He was severely dehydrated and starving, with cuts on his face, insect bites and signs of abuse, authorities said.
The evidence. Investigators say they linked Castillo Murga to the killing through cellphone location data and witness accounts, and that he sent his girlfriend a photo showing bloodstains on his face and neck. Prosecutors also accuse his grandmother and a lawyer of helping hide evidence, including by having two people clean blood from his vehicle with water, car shampoo and vinegar. DOJ says the pair helped him reach Guatemala around Feb. 2, 2019, and that he later entered the United States.
The legal path. U.S. Marshals arrested him in October 2024 on an extradition request from El Salvador. He challenged it in federal court. A judge rejected his petition in November 2025 and denied a request to stop the transfer in September 2026. The secretary of state then authorized the surrender.
Note for readers: these are accusations from Salvadoran authorities as relayed by DOJ, and Castillo Murga has not been convicted of anything. Fox does not report a response from him or his lawyers.