GALVESTON, Texas – It took three decades, but a dedicated detective has finally gotten his man; Luis Calderon is once again behind bars in Galveston County. Calderon was wanted for kidnapping and attempted murder, accused of slitting his girlfriend’s throat and leaving her for dead in 1991.
Calderon arrived at the Galveston County jail Tuesday night, under escort by Galveston County Sheriff’s Office Lieutenant Tommy Hansen - the cold case detective who’s been on top of the case for 30 years - and members of the warrant division.
“Every investigator through their career has cases that haunt you and we all have several of those and I have a number of them,” Hansen said. “This was a horrific crime and it was a tedious process of locating him. We felt for many years that he was still in the states but as time progressed, our investigation led us, thanks to records we got from ICE, to El Salvador.”
Calderon first went on the run in 1991 after skipping out on bail in the case involving the kidnapping and attempted murder of Diane Sanchez, his girlfriend at the time. A hot shot driver, Earl Pugh, happened to find the severely injured woman on the side of the road only because he was turning around to head back to Galveston because of truck problems.
Officials said Calderon was able to get out of jail because a judge granted a bond reduction request that allowed him to be released even as prosecutors argued that he was a flight risk.
In 2019, Hansen finally tracked Calderon down in El Salvador, where the suspect had family connections. Still, it would be almost another year before Hansen would be able to get Calderon into custody.
With the assistance of the FBI, the US Department of Justice, Interpol and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Galveston County, Calderon was apprehended in El Salvador on Feb. 11, 2020.
Calderon was jailed in El Salvador and has been awaiting extradition back to the United States ever since.
Hansen said the process just to get Calderon back into Texas was an ordeal in itself. He explained they had to go through a lot of “red tape” and credits Sen. Ted Cruz and President Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador.
Sen Cruz’s Office sent the following statement:
“I am thankful to President Bukele, the government of El Salvador and the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office for their work in facilitating Calderon’s transfer. This sends a clear message to any fugitive of the law: you will be brought to justice. Today is a testament to the importance of America’s bilateral regional partnerships grounded in mutual interest of the apprehension of this individual and the appreciation of the rule of law.”
A bond hearing was held for Calderon Tuesday morning, at which time, the judge placed a $1 million bond for each charge.
Hansen said, while on the run, Calderon started a new life for himself. He is now 56 years old.
“It looks like he had a normal life. He had a family, had two kids he raised. His life was in motion,” Hansen explained. Meanwhile, his victim lived on edge, not knowing if she would ever be safe.
Hansen said they did not “breathe easily” until they knew he was on the plane and heading back to Texas. He said they did not notify the victim until they knew things were completely secure and spoke with her again two minutes before holding a press conference updating the public.
With the most recent news regarding Calderon, his ex-girlfriend - a survivor in every sense of the word - said she can now sleep at night.
Watch the full press conference below: