A fugitive wanted out of Georgia on felony armed robbery and aggravated assault charges nearly 17 years ago is behind bars following a weekend traffic stop in Scottsbluff.
Police responded to a possible drunk driver report Friday night on Highway 26 and Avenue I, eventually stopping a flatbed pickup with Goshen County, Wyoming plates driven by Luis C. Brito near Team Auto Center.
An arrest affidavit says the 43-year-old could only produce a voter ID card out of Mexico, and while a check for a Nebraska or Wyoming operator’s license came up empty, Brito matched an NCIC description for an active arrest warrant from Lawrenceville, Georgia.
According to that warrant, Brito pointed a knife at a woman over the counter during an Aug. 2006 robbery of a boutique, taking two pairs of boots and with an accomplice, also got away with $32,000 from the victim. After verification of the validity of the warrant, the arresting Scottsbluff officer received an email from Georgia authorities with a picture matching the suspect, and Brito was taken to the Scotts Bluff County Detention Center.
Brito was scheduled for an initial appearance in Scotts Bluff County Court Monday afternoon on a local charge of no operator’s license and the extradition warrant, which says he’s in the country illegally and posed a risk to flee to Mexico.
