by Alex Lloyd Gross
Alexis Flores has finally been returned to Philadelphia to face charges in connection with the kidnapping, rape and murder of 5-year-old Iriana DeJesus. Flores was arrested on February 11, 2026, in Lepaera, Honduras. He faces murder charges as well as rape and kidnapping.
It was back on July 29, 2000 that DeJesus was missing while playing outside her home on the 3900 block of N Fairhill Street. On August 3, 2000, her body was discovered inside a vacant property under renovation at 3902 North 6th Street. Investigators determined that she had been sexually assaulted and killed.
During the initial investigation, detectives developed a suspect known as “Carlos,” who had reportedly been staying at the property where Iriana was found. The suspect disappeared from the neighborhood at approximately the same time Iriana was reported missing.
The investigation continued for years. In 2007, DNA evidence collected in Philadelphia was matched through the Combined DNA Index System to Flores, whose DNA had been obtained following an unrelated arrest in Arizona. Arrest warrants were subsequently issued, and Flores was added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on June 2, 2007.
Despite the passage of more than two decades, detectives with the Philadelphia Police Department’s Homicide Unit and Homicide Fugitive Squad continued working alongside the FBI to locate Flores and return him to Philadelphia. Flores was one of the top 10 fugitives on the FBI’s most wanted list.