After being on the run for three years, a man from Florida was apprehended in Mexico last week. The man, Benjamin Williams, had been evading capture after killing his ex-girlfriend while she was holding their infant son.
Chief Anthony Holloway of the St. Petersburg Police revealed on Tuesday that Williams, also known as “Bambi,” is now in custody at the Pinellas County Jail without the option for bond. The breakthrough in the case came when someone recognized Williams from a TikTok video and alerted the authorities about his whereabouts in Mexico.
Upon receiving this tip, detectives got in touch with the US Marshals Service, who swiftly arranged for Williams to be transported to Miami. There, he was met by a detective from St. Petersburg and a deputy from Pinellas County, facilitating his extradition back to the United States.
He is charged with first degree murder in the death of 27-year-old Joana Peca on July 31, 2021, and two counts of child abuse for the infant and Peca’s 4-year-old son, who was in the backseat of her car when Williams shot his mother.
The children were not physically harmed, but Holloway said at the time they were “terrified,” The Tampa Bay Times reported.
As CrimeOnline reported, police were called about a shooting at about 5:30 p.m. and found Peca dead in her vehicle near Woodlawn Memorial Gardens cemetery.
St Petersburg Police said that Williams talked Peca into meeting him so he could see the baby. When they met, however, he shot her multiple times in the face and fled.
The case featured on “In Pursuit with John Walsh” in 2022 as police searched for Williams, who was named as a suspect about a month after the shooting.
While nothing can restore the life of a beloved daughter and mother to two young children, we hope this offers them some long-overdue peace and closure,” said Holloway.
Elena Peca, the victim’s mother, spoke at a press conference on Tuesday, saying she felt a “combination of happiness and pain” when detectives told her they’d arrested Williams, the Times said.
“I‘m learning how to live with the pain and focus with those little boys and make sure they’re safe — make sure they are well loved,” she said.
As for Williams, she said, his “freedom is over. He is behind bars where he belongs.”
