Paul Edmond Carpenter, Fugitive Sought in Cold Case of 1998 Murder of German Tourist in Santa Monica, Arrested

The remaining suspect wanted for the 1998 shooting of a European tourist who had been visiting the United States, was arrested in Jamaica, announced Salvador Hernandez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI in Los Angeles, and Chief Timothy Jackman of the Santa Monica Police Department.

Carpenter was wanted in connection with the murder of Horst Fietze, the tourist who had been visiting California from Germany with a group of friends in October 1998. According to Santa Monica police, Carpenter, his girlfriend, and two others attempted to rob a group of German tourists with whom Fietze had been traveling with in Santa Monica on October 12, 1998. During the robbery, Fietze was shot to death.

Based on an investigation by detectives with the Santa Monica Police Department, Carpenter’s girlfriend and two friends were arrested and convicted for the crime; however, an outstanding warrant remained for Carpenter’s arrest. On February 9, 1999, Carpenter was charged with murder and attempted robbery by the Los Angeles District Attorney in Municipal Court of Santa Monica.

The FBI obtained a federal arrest warrant on February 12, 1999 when detectives with Santa Monica PD determined that Carpenter had fled the state of California. The warrant, filed in United States District Court, Central District of California, was obtained after Carpenter was charged federally with Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution. After the murder, investigators believe Carpenter traveled within the U.S., possibly by bus, before fleeing abroad.

In 2007, the FBI announced a reward of up to $20,000 for information leading to the apprehension of Carpenter, whose photograph and description was also profiled at: http://www.fbi.gov/wanted/fugitives/vc/murders/carpenter_pe.htm.

Recently, the FBI received information which led to Carpenter’s location in Jamaica, where he had been employed for several years. Carpenter, a U.S. citizen, had been living there using false identification, and was deported to the U.S. by Jamaican authorities. Carpenter will be returned to Los Angeles, escorted by an FBI agent and a Los Angeles Police Detective with the FBI’s Los Angeles Fugitive Task Force. The successful return of this fugitive was the result of an investigation by the FBI’s Fugitive Task Force in Los Angeles; the United States Marshals Service; the Jamaican Constabulary Force in Jamaica; the FBI’s Legal Attache in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; and detectives with the Santa Monica Police Department.

It is anticipated that the government will dismiss the UFAP warrant and that Carpenter will be turned over to the custody of the Santa Monica Police Department for prosecution by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.