Man Once Suspected In Carina Saunders Murder Arrested Again

Oklahoma City police arrested a man who was once suspected of murdering and dismembering 19-year-old Carina Saunders.

2/25/2013 Related Story: Murder Charges Dismissed Against Suspects In Case Of Dismembered Bethany Woman

On May 13, a police officer spotted a red Infinity at Interstate 40 and Meridian. The car had a Tennessee license tag. When the officer ran the plate, he discovered the car was stolen out of Knoxville, Tennessee.

The officer pulled over the car and identified the driver as 39-year-old Luis Ruiz. His passenger was 27-year-old Lauren Estephan. Both were taken into custody without incident, and booked into the Oklahoma County jail for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. Ruiz was also booked for not having a state driver’s license.

Ruiz spent six months in jail after he was arrested in connection with Saunders’ murder. Her body was found dismembered and stuffed into a duffle bag in October 2011 behind a Bethany grocery store. Murder charges against Ruiz and another man, Jimmy Massey, were dropped in February due to lack of evidence.