U.S. Marshals Service Major Case Closed

Washington, DC – A Norfolk, Virginia, man accused of killing his wife before fleeing to Hong Kong has been arrested and brought back to the U.S. to face the charges against him.

David Varela, 38, is alleged to have murdered his wife, Lina M. Guerra, sometime between Jan. 16 and Feb. 5 in their Norfolk apartment by beating and strangling her, then concealing her body in a black plastic bag inside a freezer. 

On Feb. 5, the victim’s family reported her missing to law enforcement authorities as they had not seen or heard from the victim since Jan. 16. 

Law enforcement authorities who went to the apartment to conduct a wellness check received no response after knocking on the door several times. Officers were then let in by the building security guard but found the apartment empty. During a subsequent lawful search of the apartment, authorities found the victim’s body concealed in a black plastic bag inside a freezer. Based on video and electronic key data, investigators determined Varela was the last person seen leaving the apartment. 

Varela, a member of the U.S. Navy Reserve, was on active-duty orders in Norfolk when the homicide took place. Varela has also been charged with military desertion.

The Norfolk Police Department requested assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force to locate and arrest Varela after they obtained arrest warrants charging Varela with one count of concealing a dead body with malicious intent or to prevent detection and one count of first-degree murder after a Feb. 10 autopsy of the victim determined the manner of death to be homicide, and the cause of death to be blunt force trauma to the head and asphyxiation. 

The USMS Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force adopted the fugitive investigation Feb. 11. 

On April 14, after an extensive investigation in coordination with the USMS Office of International Operations, Varela was apprehended and deported back to the United States. He was taken into custody without incident by USMS personal in San Francisco and booked into San Francisco County Jail, awaiting extradition back to Norfolk to face the charges against him. 

The USMS provides assistance, expertise and training on fugitive matters to federal, state, local and international agencies, working with the international law enforcement community to apprehend fugitives abroad as well as to seek foreign fugitives living or residing in the U.S. The agency protects the public from international fugitives through coordinated enforcement efforts with foreign and domestic law enforcement.  

The USMS manages and executes the U.S. government’s extradition program on behalf of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.

The agency maintains liaison positions with the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs and the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service.

In fiscal year 2025, the USMS closed 1,763 transnational fugitive investigations requiring investigative coordination with 142 countries and territories. The USMS conducted 966 removals, including extraditions, foreign extraditions, deportations and expulsions, through coordination with 70 foreign nations.