Murder suspect apprehended in Mexico months after shooting death of ex-girlfriend in Sylmar

SYLMAR, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A murder suspect has been arrested in Mexico and extradited to the United States on suspicion of fatally shooting his 34-year-old ex-girlfriend in Sylmar in January, authorities announced Wednesday.

Jose Benjamin Rodriguez was apprehended by local police in the coastal state of Colima and returned to Los Angeles on Saturday, the LAPD said in a statement.

Rodriguez allegedly forced Eloise Elizarraraz's car off the road and fatally shot her on the morning of Jan. 7, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. At the time of the incident, she was driving to work on the first day of her new job.

Elizarraraz's black BMW, it's driver-side window shattered, came to a stop on a sidewalk after the shooting near the intersection of Harding Street and Tripoli Avenue. A good Samaritan tried desperately to save the mother of three.

"She was in the car. I couldn't see her because she was leaned over in her seat, so I opened the door and my dad came out and I told him, 'Call 911,'" said Brittney Irving.

Investigators believe Rodriguez had been lying in wait until Elizarraraz left her home.

"It has been tough for our family, and we just want for him to turn himself in. It's time," Eloise's cousin, Tony Elizarraraz, said while the suspect was at large in April.

A $50,000 reward, sponsored by the L.A. City Council, was offered in the case on April 8.

"Over the next few days, detectives received numerous telephone calls from anonymous callers, one of which indicated Rodriguez had sought refuge in Mexico," the LAPD news release said. Detectives later identified a "gang member associate" of Rodriguez who resided in Colima, whose state police were notified.

Rodriguez was located and arrested May 24, then was returned to the U.S. and booked for Elizarraraz's murder, the statement said.