Suspect arrested in 1994 killing of former Miss Nevada candidate
Tara Cleveland would have turned 40 on Saturday.
The model, Miss Nevada runner-up and UNLV student was on the way to a bright future until she was gunned down 15 years ago by two car thieves.
Police knew who their suspects were: two teenagers who had fled to Mexico and avoided extradition to the United States for years.
One of them, Joseph Villeczas, was turned over by Mexican authorities in 2006 and convicted of second-degree murder. But the other suspect remained at large, leaving Cleveland’s case open.
On Thursday her case finally came to a close.
Police in Whiteville, Tenn., pulled over 33-year-old Fernando Garcia Valenzuela and arrested him on three felony drug charges. When they began processing him, they discovered he was wanted for murder in North Las Vegas.
Her killing consumed more than 100 investigators over the years. Many had retired or moved on. The detective who took ownership of her case for the last nine years, Mark Koch, was set to retire in four weeks.
“When he called me today, I answered the phone and he said 'Tim, this is Mark. This is one of the happiest days of my career,’” Sgt. Tim Bedwell said. “I knew exactly what he was going to tell me, just from hearing his voice.”
Koch said he called Cleveland’s brother and went to see Cleveland’s mother at her work to give her the news in person.
“As you can imagine, it was very emotional,” Koch said.
Contact reporter Lawrence Mower at lmower@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0440.
