Crime & Safety

International Manhunt for Hit-and-Run Driver

Feds take search overseas to find driver in hit-and-run that killed Sister Jackie Walsh, reports say.

Federal agents are intensifying the hunt for the man believed to be responsible for the death of a beloved Syosset nun.

U.S. Marshals and Southampton Town Police nearly caught Carlos Armando Ixpec-Chitay, 30, twice, missing him by minutes after a tip led him to his whereabouts, reported Newsday Sunday.

Those close to the case believe Ixpec-Chitay may have fled to his home country of Guatemala after the July hit-and-run in Water Mill that killed Sister Jackie Walsh, said the report

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Detectives said that Walsh, 59, was walking on Rose Hill Road in Water Mill at about 8:30 p.m. July 10 when she was struck and killed. Walsh had been at a retreat with her fellow Sisters of Mercy when she headed out for her nightly walk.

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A 2009 Volkswagen Touareg was found abandoned with front-end damage about a half-mile from the scene, said Newsday. The vehicle belonged to Ixpec-Chitay's boss, Andrew Zaro, police said.

Though Ixpec-Chitay has not yet been captured, agents have taken two of his family members into custody, including , who was convicted in December of making a materially false statement to federal investigators. 


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