BELTRAN-MORENO IN CUSTODY

SHERIFF CHARLES B. WELLS REPORTS:

The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Tampa Division, Special Agent In Charge Carl Whitehead, announce the arrest of Vicente Ignacio Beltran-Moreno, DOB 7-13-84, of last known address, 3719 17 Street Court E., Bradenton.

Beltran-Moreno turned himself in to the FBI at approximately 11:00 a.m. today at a port of entry at the Mexico-Texas border and was arrested on a federal warrant of Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution. Beltran-Moreno will also be charged in connection with local warrants for Armed Kidnapping and Aggravated Assault and is being held in Texas pending extradition back to Florida.

The Manatee County arrest warrants for Beltran-Moreno were signed on Sunday, February 25, two days after the kidnapping of 13-year-old Clay Moore. Clay was abducted at gunpoint from a bus stop on Old Tampa Road, Parrish, shortly before 9:00 a.m. on February 23. He was tied up to a tree but managed to free himself and get help.

The investigation continues as to whether someone else may have been involved in the kidnapping plot. Further information will be released as warranted.

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