CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — The hunt for a man accused of shooting his estranged wife and murdering her boyfriend ended Sunday evening with the suspect in custody.
Joshua M. Federico, 44, was arrested without incident hours after being spotted at a Publix in the 13700 block of Hull Street Road. Multiple sightings were reported in the surrounding Deer Run community, according to police.
Federico was later located in the area of the 7900 block of Spring Run Road. Police say he was found in an “abandoned structure.”
Federico is accused of critically injuring his wife, Sarah Grove Federico, in an early morning shooting at her home on Second Branch Road. The victim lived at the home with her boyfriend, 38-year-old Lawrence J. Howell.
Chesterfield Police also obtained a murder warrant after human remains, believed to be those of Howell, were discovered in the area of Second Branch Road. Police said details on where the body was recovered would not be released at this time.
Federico is currently being held in the Chesterfield County Jail without bond. He has been charged with murder, in addition to malicious wounding and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
Police began actively searching for Federico, a Navy veteran, Friday.
Police initially had Federico’s home — located not far from the shooting scene on Black Road — surrounded for more than three hours Friday morning.
Friday afternoon, the investigation shifted to S. Federico’s home Second Branch Road where police were originally dispatched to at around 3:30 a.m. for a reported shooting.
When officers arrived there, they found S. Federico suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. She was transported to an area hospital with life-threatening injuries, according to police.
An 8News crew on scene said roughly a dozen Chesterfield Police marked and unmarked vehicles have been traveling back and forth from the two homes on Second Branch Road and Black Road.
At one point Friday morning police, K9 units and a helicopter were all searching for Federico.
On Sunday, Chesterfield Police, along with the assistance of Virginia State Police, Richmond Police, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), FBI and the U.S. Marshal Service Capital Area Fugitive Task Force helped locate Federico.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact Chesterfield County Police Department at (804) 748-1251.
