A California man convicted in his mother’s death was the target of an “intense manhunt” and nabbed in Mexico after walking out of a transitional facility without warning, authorities said this week.
According to authorities and court documents, Ike Nicholas Souzer, 20, was arrested Friday for allegedly breaking his probation terms, which required him to notify his probation supervisor of his locations and stay in the neighborhood.
Though Souzer’s probation was based on a vandalism conviction, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer’s office cautioned the public on March 21, the day after he left a Santa Ana transitional facility, that “this individual should be considered extremely dangerous and violent.”
Souter had a history of violence as a teenager, including a conviction for voluntary manslaughter in the death of his mother, who was fatally stabbed when he was 13, and a conviction for an attack on three jail guards when he was 17 or 18.
In a statement issued Wednesday, the DA’s office also stated that Souzer was convicted of possessing a weapon — the agency said it was a shank — while in detention in late 2022.
Souzer was discovered in Playas de Rosarito, a seaside community south of Tijuana, according to the District Attorney’s Office. It thanked Mexican authorities, US Customs and Border Protection, the US Border Patrol, and the office’s fugitive task group for the capture.
“He set a plan in motion to flee to a foreign country in yet another attempt to escape the consequences of his actions,” Spitzer said in a statement issued Wednesday by his office.
The public defender’s office, which has previously represented Souzer, did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The district attorney’s office admitted that during Souzer’s juvenile court manslaughter trial, a family member stated that he was autistic and had a history of outbursts.
The DA’s office stated that Souzer has a long criminal history and that when he attacked his mother, he was on home detention and wearing a GPS monitor for another case.
According to the office, Souzer broke his probation when he fled the same transitional organization’s supervision in 2022, while he was subject to mandatory GPS monitoring for the weapons conviction. According to a statement released on Wednesday, the DA’s task group discovered Souzer at a homeless encampment.
Spitzer lambasted county judges for imposing what he called light penalties in cases involving Souzer. The agency intended to try him as an adult for his mother’s killing, it alleged, and it routinely requested harsher punishments in his future cases.
Judges in both cases permitted time served to be counted and awarded Souzer credit for good behavior, according to the DA’s office. The office addressed certain judges by name. The California Judges Association did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
The District Attorney’s office also appeared to disparage Project Kinship, an organization that has “spent years advocating for Souzer’s release from custody.”
The nonprofit corporation oversees the supervisory program and transitional facility from which Souzer departed in 2022 on March 20. It stated that it couldn’t comment on specific cases.
Steve Kim, the founder and executive director, stated via email that Project Kinship provides services such as case management, counseling, and peer mentorship. We support people affected by substance abuse, gangs, and jail.”
He stated it had a great impact on Orange County.
“I have not yet met an inherently evil person in our work — just lives shattered by trauma and mental health challenges, often leading to a loss of hope,” he went on to say. “Providing support and opportunities makes us all safer.”
For more updates visit our website.