Florida Manslaughter Defendant Found in Costa
Rica
A Florida man who disappeared on the last
day of his manslaughter trial in 1998 has been arrested in Costa Rica
and faces extradition to the United States to serve a 32-year prison
sentence imposed in his absence.
Keith Cojocar, 34, formerly a Royal Palm Beach machinist, was working at
a sports gambling business in San José when he was arrested Tuesday by
Costa Rican authorities.
"It is a magnificent day," said Assistant State Attorney Ellen Roberts,
the prosecutor who promised Cojocar would be returned to justice. "I can
hardly wait to see him."
A U.S. Marshals Service task force and State Department agents tracked
Cojocar to Costa Rica since taking on the investigation in 2003. They
were closing in when Cojocar went underground after he was mentioned
about a year ago in an episode of TV's "America's Most Wanted."
"It was a tough one," said Deputy U.S. Marshal Walt Reilly. "We put a
lot of man-hours into this."
Cojocar was convicted of drunken-driving manslaughter in the deaths of
Alice Tyler, 46, and Heather Durkin, 15, who were killed in a head-on
collision with Cojocar in Jupiter, Florida, in 1996.
"For the person who caused it to just get away just didn't feel fair,"
said Ruth Cottrell, Tyler's sister.
Cojocar's mother, Mary Ann Cojocar, said she couldn't blame her son for
fleeing.
"It was just one mistake," she said. "You would run. Everybody would
run."
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Keith Cojocar, seen here in a mug shot
taken by Palm Beach County (FL) Sheriff's officers after he was
arrested on charges of DUI and vehicular manslaughter. Foto by
Mugshots.com
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