An international search for a Dominican Republic national accused of killing a garbage-truck driver has ended in rural St Mary, where Jamaican police reportedly found him living at a property in Annotto Bay.
The man has been identified as Jhovanny de Jesús Metz Cruz, also known by the alias “Macho”. The Jamaica Constabulary Force lists him as 26 years old, while police information published in the Dominican Republic gives his age as 28. Authorities have not explained that discrepancy.
Metz Cruz was captured on Tuesday, August 18, during what the JCF described as a targeted, intelligence-led operation conducted by officers assigned to the St Mary Policing Division.
Police said he was found with another Dominican Republic national at premises where both men were being housed by a Jamaican resident. All three were taken into custody, although authorities have not disclosed whether the other two men have been charged or are being treated as suspects, witnesses or persons of interest.
The operation appears to have involved a considerably wider international effort than was initially disclosed in Jamaica. Dominican police reporting indicates that intelligence was shared and coordinated through INTERPOL offices in Santo Domingo and Jamaica.
Suspect reportedly entered Jamaica by sea
Information attributed to the Dominican Republic National Police alleges that Metz Cruz entered Jamaica illegally by sea and used a false name or identity to avoid detection.
It has not been publicly disclosed when he arrived, where he landed, how long he had been staying in Annotto Bay, or whether other people may have helped him travel between the two countries.
Dominican authorities reportedly believe Metz Cruz had remained at large for approximately four months. They said he was the subject of an INTERPOL Red Notice dated April 19, 2026, bearing reference A-6332/4-2026, as well as a domestic arrest warrant.
A Red Notice is an international request to locate and provisionally arrest a wanted person pending surrender, extradition or other lawful action. It is not itself an international arrest warrant, and the person named remains presumed innocent unless convicted by a court.
The killing of Deivy Carlos Abreu Quezada
Metz Cruz is wanted in connection with the death of 40-year-old Deivy Carlos Abreu Quezada, who worked as the driver of a municipal garbage-collection truck in Santiago, Dominican Republic.
The fatal incident occurred on April 17, 2026, following what Dominican investigators describe as a traffic-related confrontation.
According to accounts attributed to the Dominican Public Ministry and National Police, a group travelling on motorcycles allegedly pursued the garbage truck through Santiago. Investigators claim that a motorcycle was used to block the truck and that the pursuit eventually reached a parking area at the Santiago Palace of Justice.
Abreu Quezada was allegedly attacked there by a group of motorcyclists. Authorities say he suffered a fatal stab wound, and Metz Cruz has been identified by Dominican investigators as the suspected principal or material perpetrator of that injury.
Those claims have not yet been tested at trial.
Seven other people have reportedly already been brought before the Dominican justice system in connection with the killing. The precise charges and present status of those proceedings were not immediately available.
Family informed before arrest was announced
Celine Quezada, the victim’s sister, told Dominican newspaper Diario Libre that authorities contacted the family before publicly announcing Metz Cruz’s capture.
She said the arrest had brought the family a measure of relief after four months of uncertainty and fear. The family is reportedly expecting to be informed when arrangements are made to return the suspect to the Dominican Republic.
The capture occurred exactly four months and one day after Abreu Quezada’s death, making the news both reassuring and painful for relatives still awaiting a full judicial accounting of what happened.
Quezada also questioned how a wanted man could allegedly have obtained false documents and travelled from the Dominican Republic to Jamaica. Her comments raise a question now likely to form part of the broader investigation: whether Metz Cruz acted alone in leaving the country or benefited from an organised network capable of arranging transport, documents and accommodation.
No Jamaican or Dominican authority has publicly accused any specific person of belonging to such a network.
Separate attempted-murder prosecution
Dominican reporting indicates that the homicide investigation is not the only criminal matter facing Metz Cruz.
He is reportedly also accused of attempted murder and criminal association arising from a May 7, 2023 shooting in the El Ejido area of Santiago.
In that case, Dominican prosecutors allege that police sergeant Christopher Almánzar García, attached to a SWAT unit, was shot and suffered fractures to his left femur and knee. The officer’s nephew, Jeison Willian Almánzar Núñez, was reportedly wounded in the leg while attempting to assist him.
Metz Cruz had reportedly been placed under court-ordered restrictions that included periodic reporting, a prohibition on leaving the country and an order to stay away from the victims.
Dominican media report that he failed to attend a scheduled trial before the Fourth Collegiate Court of Santiago on May 20, after which the court declared him a fugitive in that proceeding.
The allegations connected with the 2023 incident also remain to be determined by a court.
Questions over his transfer from Jamaica
Dominican authorities are now said to be arranging for Metz Cruz to be returned to his home country, where prosecutors intend to place him before the courts.
However, the precise legal mechanism has not been publicly explained. Dominican reporting states that Jamaica and the Dominican Republic do not have a bilateral extradition treaty. If confirmed, authorities may need to rely on immigration procedures, deportation, reciprocal legal assistance or another lawful surrender mechanism supported by international police cooperation.
His alleged use of a false identity and illegal entry by sea may also create separate immigration or criminal-law issues in Jamaica. The Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency has not publicly stated whether Metz Cruz entered the country through an authorised port or whether any Jamaican immigration charges are being considered.
It is also not yet clear whether he will appear before a Jamaican court before any transfer takes place.
Two other men remain in custody
The position of the two men detained alongside Metz Cruz remains uncertain.
The JCF said another Dominican Republic national and the Jamaican resident who allegedly housed the two foreign nationals were taken into custody during the operation. Police have not announced charges, released their names or indicated whether investigators believe either man knew Metz Cruz was internationally wanted.
Providing accommodation to someone does not, by itself, establish criminal involvement. Investigators would have to determine what the men knew, whether false information or documents were used, and whether anyone deliberately assisted the suspect in avoiding law enforcement.
Jamaica sends a warning
The JCF said the arrest formed part of the St Mary Police Division’s continuing strategy to use intelligence to locate wanted people, disrupt criminal activity and prevent communities from becoming safe havens for suspects fleeing law enforcement at home or overseas.
The discovery of an internationally wanted man in Annotto Bay is nevertheless likely to prompt questions about maritime border security between Jamaica and neighbouring Caribbean states. The two islands are separated by hundreds of kilometres of sea, but the region’s many small vessels, informal landing points and established maritime routes can make surveillance difficult.
For Jamaican investigators, the arrest is more than the conclusion of a manhunt. It may be the beginning of a wider inquiry into how the suspect allegedly reached Jamaica, who supplied the identity he reportedly used, who arranged his accommodation and whether his presence formed part of a broader cross-border network.
Metz Cruz remains in Jamaican custody as local authorities work with their Dominican and international counterparts. No date has yet been announced for his removal or return to the Dominican Republic.