Suspect in 1991 murder extradited from United Kingdom, booked into Santa Barbara County Jail
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. - Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce Dudley reported that the suspect in the 1991 murder of a man was extradited from the United Kingdom and booked into the Santa Barbara County Jail.
62-year-old Wei Miao had a felony complaint and a warrant out for his arrest, both filed on June 28, 1991, which charged Miao with the murder of Chung Yu Ping on or around June 6, 1991.
Ping's body was reportedly found in a culvert off Highway 1 in Las Cruces, Calif. Law enforcement believe Miao used a hammer while committing the murder.
When police moved to arrest Miao, they were unable to find him and later determined he fled the country in mid-June 1991.
It wasn't until 2012 that the FBI obtained information that revealed Miao was residing in London. The District Attorney's Office then began the process of requesting the arrest and extradition of Miao from the United Kingdom.
On August 20, 2015, Wei Miao was located and arrested in London by UK law enforcement authorities. After protracted court proceedings, his extradition was finally ordered by the UK High Court on July 1, 2020.
Miao was booked into Santa Barbara County Jail by District Attorney Investigators and is being held on a $2,000,000 bail.
His arraignment is scheduled for August 31 in Superior Court Department 9 in Santa Maria.
The District Attorney's Office said they received significant assistance from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, Los Angeles Field Office, the US Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the Crown Prosecution Service’s Extradition Unit, the London Metropolitan Police Service and the US Marshall’s Service during this process.
