Chilling details emerge after missing veteran’s body found in car in Mexico sparking manhunt for ‘master of disguise’
A MISSING veteran's body found in a car in Mexico has sparked an urgent manhunt for her boyfriend after he escaped border control.
Tyler Adams - who has been dubbed a "master of disguise" by law enforcement - is wanted by the FBI for questioning after Racquel Sabean's remains were found in her vehicle.
Adams, 50, escaped Customs and Border Protection and entered the US on Thursday at the San Ysidro Port of Entry under the alias "Aaron Bain" on June 16.
Immigration officials in Mexico reportedly handed Adams over to Customs and Border Protection officers at the border, according to the Baja California attorney general.
No information was provided as to how Adams escaped CBP, but the FBI was not present when the handoff between authorities happened, FBI San Diego's Public Affairs Officer William McNamara said, according to ABC affiliate
Adams went on the run after his girlfriend Sabean, 40, was found dead in the trunk of her car in Tijuana, Mexico in late May.
Sabean was a US Navy veteran and lived across the border from Tijuana in San Diego, California.
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Hawaii officials have described Adams as a "master of disguise"; as he is known to use multiple fake and stolen identities, San Diego Fox affiliate reported.
The FBI said Adams has over a dozen aliases. Some known are Paul Wilson Phipps, David Smith, and Dominic Braun.
He's allegedly impersonated law students, created five fake businesses, cashed out huge fake checks, and stole hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to .
According to court documents obtained by Rolling Stone, he was charged with three felony counts of theft in 2009, and pleaded no contest in 2013.
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According to a 2012 article in the Adams admitted to 48 felony counts, including using his parents’ identities, often forging their signatures to buy real estate and other things.
A prosecutor in Hawaii described Adams as a “con man, a sociopath who had no regard for the victims’ property or those who might be affected by his criminal activity,” according to the San Diego Reader.
He also collected commission on some of his own property purchases by posing as the loan officer and real estate agent, it's alleged.
After Sabean was found dead last month, her seven-month-old daughter, Valentina, went missing in early June, according to .
A representative for the San Diego FBI told Rolling Stone that Sabean and Adams, who are both US citizens, were living together in Mexico at the time of Sabean’s disappearance and that Adams is the presumed father of Sabean’s daughter.
Adams was detained in Tecate, Mexico by local authorities on June 15 after an Amber Alert was issued for Valentina, according to the FBI.
Adams was uncooperative during questioning in Mexico and then fled the country, according to police.
Valentina was found by authorities in Playas de Rosarito and remains in protective custody in Mexico, according to the California State Attorney General’s Office.
The victim's father, David Sabean, told : “The Customs agent that led him through should be ashamed, the San Diego police should be ashamed."
When referring to Adams, Denise Sabean-Hosking, Racquel's mother said, “He loves the baby, he wants that baby and I just need to have the peace of mind knowing that he’s in a place where he’s not ever going to be able to steal her away from family."
Adams is also wanted in Hawaii after a warrant was issued in September of 2020. According to the FBI, he is a fugitive for escape in the second degree.
In May of 2019, Adams left the Oahu Community Correctional Center on a work furlough and never returned, according to officials in Hawaii.
The FBI describes Adams as 5 feet, 9 inches tall, and weighing 175 pounds with brown hair.
He was last seen wearing a yellow, short-sleeved button-up shirt, tan pants, and black running shoes. He could possibly have swelling under his eyes.
"He should be considered dangerous; he has an extensive criminal history as it relates to fraud, multiple identities, multiple fake and stolen identities," Officer McNamara said.
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The Sun has reached out to the FBI's San Diego office for further updates on Admas' whereabouts but has not received an answer by the time of publication.
The Bureau's San Diego office has asked for the public's help in finding Adams. If you have any tips please call (858) 320-1800.