Man convicted of 2000 West Chicago sexual assault captured in Mexico

A fugitive on the run from authorities since May 2008 has been captured in Mexico and returned to DuPage County.

Pedro Cerritos Seriteno, 35, was tried in absentia in 2008, found guilty and sentenced to 14 years in prison for the 2000 sexual assault of a woman in West Chicago.

Seriteno was indicted and a warrant was issued for his arrest in July 2002, but he remained at large until he was arrested on the warrant in April 2008.

He bonded out of DuPage County jail on May 19, 2008, after posting $10,000 and fled to his native Mexico.

Sheriff's detectives assigned to The United States Marshals Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force acted on a recent tip that led them to Seriteno in Mexico.

"This is a classic example of the perseverance of law enforcement," said DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin. "Even in a case that is a decade old and the defendant has fled the country, we don't give up."

Berlin said Seriteno will not face any additional charges for fleeing.

"We did not indict him for jumping bail but the fact that he was not in court was factored into his sentence," he said.

Seriteno was extradited to the U.S. and booked Wednesday in DuPage County.

Sheriff's spokeswoman Dawn Domrose said Seriteno is due in court at 8:30 a.m. Thursday before being assigned and shipped to the Illinois Department of Corrections to begin serving his sentence.