Posted on 07/17/2026 11:29:24 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Edgar Olivas, 40, was booked into Miami-Dade's Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on Friday on charges of first-degree murder and armed robbery, records showed.
Nearly five years after a Miami mobile store owner was gunned down during a robbery, the suspect believed to be responsible for his killing has been arrested, authorities said.
Edgar Olivas, 40, was booked into Miami-Dade's Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on Friday on charges of first-degree murder and armed robbery, records showed.
According to an arrest warrant, the charges stem from the Oct. 1, 2021 killing of 64-year-old Walter Castañeda Sr.
Castañeda was the owner of the Boost Mobile at 443 Northwest 12th Avenue in Little Havana where he was found shot in the abdomen.
Police body camera footage and cellphone video showed officers arriving at the scene and finding Castañeda wounded on the ground outside the store.
He was taken to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
A witness told police said Castañeda was closing up and pulling down the store's shutters when he was approached by a gunman, who pointed a gun towards Castaneda's back and demanded in Spanish that Castañeda "let everything go" before taking a black bag from him, the warrant said.
The gunman fled to a waiting vehicle but Castañeda pulled out his gun and fired several shots at the suspect, who returned fire, hitting Castañeda, before fleeing in the car, the witness said, according to the warrant.
The deadly encounter happened as Castañeda’s grandchildren were waiting for him in a nearby car. Video showed a baby and several other people were just steps away when the shots were fired.
The family of a man who was shot and killed outside of his business earlier this month claims police could have done more to save his life, but Miami Police say officers rendered aid and followed protocol. Walter Castaneda, 64, was shot on Oct. 1 as he was closing up shop at his Boost Mobile store on Northwest 12th Avenue and 5th Street. A man in an orange hoodie had approached him to steal a bag of money.
Investigators tracked down the vehicle that fled and found it was reported stolen on Oct. 3, two days after the shooting, and the man who owns the vehicle told detectives he rented it to a man and woman but he reported it stolen after it wasn't returned.
The phone used to communicate with the owner was tracked to a woman who'd booked a room at a hotel that was paid by Olivas, and a records check showed Olivas and the woman lived in Orlando, the warrant said.
The car's owner was later given a photo lineup and identified Oliva as the man he rented the car to, the warrant said.
Detectives also obtained surveillance video that showed Olivas and the woman at a gas station shortly before the shooting, the warrant said.
The woman's brother identified the man in the video as Olivas, his sister's boyfriend, the warrant said.
The warrant was filed in December 2021 but Olivas wasn't found until Miami Police said he was stopped by Orlando Police, who saw he had a warrant and took him into custody before he was extradited to Miami.
"This is something that is pleasing to us to know that we have this man in custody and that the family is gonna get some closure," Miami Police spokesman Michael Vega said Friday.
Vega said homicide detectives continued to work the case and didn't give up on finding Olivas.
"Even though this is a case that was four years old, they never stopped working the case, they never stopped looking to see where this offender was," he said.
NBC6 talked with Castaneda’s son over the phone Friday. He didn't want to talk on camera because he says he still has the painful memories from that night and thinks about what happened to his father every time he passes his dad's business.
But he says this is ‘great news’ and what the family has hoped and waited for.
Olivas was being held without bond Friday, jail records showed. Attorney information wasn't available.
One of the reasons the murder rate is going down.
It is very difficult to get away with crimes with all the digital information sources now available.
Good. When will he be executed?
In 2061 if the two bastards getting executed soon are anything to go by.
Murdered in 1984 and the other was 1987. 40 freaking years.
Death sentence should be carried out maximum 1 year.
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