Nov. 23 (UPI) — Authorities in Florida on Tuesday arrested a man accused of executing four Chinese nationals on an Oklahoma marijuana grow operation over the weekend during what was reported as a hostage situation.
Officers with the Miami Beach Police Department arrested 45-year-old Wu Chen before 4 p.m. Tuesday, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation said in a statement. The suspect is being held at the Miami-Dade County Detention Center awaiting extradition to Oklahoma where he is expected to face murder and shooting with intent to kill charges.
Police said Wu was arrested without incident after a tag reader flagged the vehicle he was driving. The arrest occurred hours after the OSBI said it was hunting for man whose identity was withheld out of fear others would be put in danger.
Police said the suspect executed three men and a woman on a marijuana farm in Oklahoma’s Kingfisher County, northwest of Oklahoma City, on Sunday.
Deputies with the Kingfisher County Sheriff’s Office found the bodies after being called to the farm concerning a hostage situation.
According to authorities, the incident began at about 5:45 p.m. Sunday when the suspect entered a building on North 2760 Road, west of the the small town of Hennessey, where a grow operation was being housed.
“Several employees” were inside when the suspect arrived, the OSBI said, adding he remained on the premises “for a significant amount of time before the executions began.”
Deputies also found a fifth victim who was wounded and air-lifted to a metro hospital. The extent of their injuries was unknown.
The OSBI has identified all victims as Chinese nationals, adding next of kin notification was pending due to “a significant language barrier.”
The OSBI said assistance was requested in the case by the Kingfisher County Sheriff’s Office after the four bodies were found.
