HONOLULU (KHON2) — On Nov. 30, Tyler Adams, 51, was arrested in Newport Beach, Calif. by federal authorities on a state warrant that was issued in Hawaii.
Adams was supposed to return to the Laumaka Furlough Center in May 2019 but failed to do so.
A $50,000 warrant was issued for Adams’ arrest by an Oahu Circuit Court judge in September 2020 relating to a second-degree escape charge, which is also a Class C felony. At the time, Adams was also serving time at Oahu Community Correctional Center (OCCC) for two felony theft convictions.
The so-called “Master of Disguise” was also wanted by the FBI for questioning in the disappearance of his girlfriend who was found dead in Mexico, the bureau told KHON2 in June 2022.
“The multiple identities feeds into his criminal history, the forgeries the thefts what we would call white-collar crime,” said William McNamara of San Diego FBI Public Affairs.
The bureau doesn’t know how he got to the mainland, but they say he was romantically involved with Raquel Sabean in San Diego before they moved to Tijuana, Mexico in April. The FBI said the two had a 7-month-old child.
Mexican authorities reportedly found Sabean’s car and decomposed body. Authorities contacted Adams in Mexico after issuing an amber alert for the baby, who was safe. They said he then presented a fake ID at the border to sneak past customs and border patrol.
“That enabled him to pass through really undetected or without further inspection. Obviously, if he had used an identification in his true name the warrant out of Hawaii would’ve hit and would’ve put him into further scrutiny and likely been arrested off of that warrant,” McNamara said.
Adams will be extradited from California to Hawaii next week.