LOS ANGELES, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- A 24-year-old American man accused of killing a Chinese student near the University of Utah in the western U.S. state of Utah was arrested on Tuesday, police confirmed.
"Suspect in #homicide is in custody," the Salt Lake City Police Department tweeted at about 12:45 p.m. local time (0645 GMT, Wednesday).
"Austin Boutain, suspect in fatal shooting Monday, has been apprehended. He is now in custody," the University of Utah also texted the news to students.
Boutain, a white male with a tear drop tattoo on his face as well as tattoos on his neck and one arm, was identified as the suspect in the killing of a 23-year-old Chinese student on Monday night in a failed carjacking attempt near the University of Utah's Salt Lake City campus.
The victim was Chenwei Guo, who was a pre-computer science major and worked as a peer advisor in the university's International Student and Scholar Services Office, Shaw Wood, a communications specialist of the university confirmed to Xinhua.
He "was killed in a senseless, random act of violence," Wood said.
Assisted by a helicopter and snipers, hundreds of local and federal law enforcement personnel hunted Boutain all night on campus and the foothills above the university, but did not locate him.
Boutain was taken into custody without incident at a public library in the city's downtown, Keith Horrocks, detective of the Salt Lake City Police Department, was quoted as saying by local media reports.
The Chinese embassy in Washington paid high attention to the incident and expressed sincere condolences and sympathy to Guo's relatives, a Chinese embassy official told Xinhua.
The Chinese embassy has made contact with the police after the incident, urging timely investigations of the incident.
The Chinese embassy will closely follow the development of the case, and provide assistance for the relatives during their stay in the United States, the official said.
Police disclosed Tuesday that the suspect, who has a criminal history, and his 23-year-old wife Kathleen Boutain may also be related to a homicide committed last week in Golden, Colorado, said the police.
Reports said a 63-year-old man's body was found Tuesday in a trailer in Golden. And police believe Boutain had been driving the man's pickup truck which is still missing.
