Man Wanted In Philly Homicide, Caught In Westchester Traffic Stop

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY — New York State Police say that a routine traffic stop in Westchester County led to the arrest of a man wanted for homicide in Philadelphia.

On Friday, state troopers attempted to stop a vehicle reported stolen in Virginia. The driver cooperated at first, but then fled at high speed, leading to a brief pursuit lasting about a minute, according to police.

The pursuit ended when the suspect crashed the stolen vehicle, and then fled on foot. Troopers soon caught the man near the crash site.

At the time of his arrest, the suspect provided false identification to police and was found to have several fraudulent forms of ID.

He was taken to Westchester Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries he received in the crash.

After fingerprint analysis, the suspect was identified as Geovanni Otero, who was wanted by the Philadelphia Police Department and the United States Marshals Service for homicide and other offenses. He was being sought in connection with the bludgeoning to death of a 29-year-old woman, who was found in a shallow grave on November 8, 2024.

In addition to being a fugitive from justice, Otero is awaiting arraignment on Sunday for fourth degree criminal possession of stolen property, obstructing governmental administration, false impersonation, unlawful fleeing, and reckless driving.

He remains in custody pending extradition proceedings.