Fugitives Oliver Karafa and Lucy Li arrested in Hungary
A fugitive couple wanted in a double shooting in Stoney Creek has been arrested in Budapest, Hungary.
Hamilton police announced Monday morning that Oliver Karafa and Yun (Lucy) Lu Li have been arrested, three months into the manhunt for the pair who fled to Eastern Europe within 24 hours of the shooting. They face charges of first degree murder and attempted murder.
Tyler Pratt, 39, was killed and a 26-year-old woman was seriously hurt in the shooting around 7:15 p.m. Feb. 28 behind a closed business on Arvin Avenue.
Police allege the four knew each other and met that Sunday in the secluded industrial area.
After the shooting the 26-year-old victim managed to walk out front where passersby stopped and called for help. Pratt's body was found in a paved area behind the building.
Karafa and Li, who are from Toronto, fled together to Eastern Europe within 24 hours of the shooting, before Hamilton police had secured a warrant for their arrest.
As of last month Det. Sgt. Jim Callender, of the major crime unit, said it was believed they were still in hiding there together. He said police would find them.
Now the pair is being held in custody in Budapest, where the process to extradite them to Canada is already underway.
Hamilton police thanked the various police services that helped with tracking down and arresting Karafa and Li, including the Hungarian Fugitive Active Search Team (FAST).
Karafa has ties to several Eastern European countries, including Slovakia, where he was born, and Czech Republic, where he did business.
Records obtained by the Spectator show he dissolved his part ownership of a Prague-based medical supply company four days after the murder. It was the same day police announced the pair were wanted.
Karafa and his family immigrated to Canada in 2001, according to parole board documents. In 2014, he was sentenced to just under five years in prison for impaired driving causing death and criminal negligence causing death in a drunk driving crash in Toronto that killed his friend and trainer David Chiang.
Li is a triplet and her mother is a prominent Chinese-Canadian businessperson. After the murder her family released a statement to Chinese-language media offering condolences to the victims and calling on Li to co-operate with authorities.
Pratt was an aspiring entrepreneur who was in the process of moving from British Columbia to Ontario. He was looking to establish business here and move to the Greater Toronto Area.
After the shooting the car the victims' travelled in was stolen from the scene. A white Land Rover, seen fleeing the scene, was later recovered in the GTA. Another unspecified car was found somewhere in Hamilton, not at the crime scene.
Nicole O'Reilly is a Hamilton-based reporter covering crime and justice for The Spectator. Reach her via email: noreilly@thespec.com