Twenty-four years after Sharon Van Gilder was raped and strangled in Tacoma, the man who killed her will spend the rest of his life in prison. A Pierce County jury convicted Miguel Urbano-Vazquez, 50, on Tuesday of the aggravated first-degree murder of Van Gilder, a 39-year-old mother of two, closing a cold case DNA solved only after his deportation to Mexico.

Key Points

• A Pierce County jury convicted Miguel Urbano-Vazquez, 50, of murdering Sharon Van Gilder, 39, in March 2002.
• Van Gilder was raped and strangled after leaving Tacoma's Golden Rooster Tavern; her body was dumped on a rural road in South Hill.
• The jury also convicted him of first-degree rape with a deadly weapon and second-degree rape for attacks on three other Tacoma women in 2002.
• DNA linked him to the killing in 2012, but he had been deported to Mexico; the FBI tracked him to Chimalhuacán in 2019 and arrested him in 2023.
• The murder conviction carries life in prison without parole; sentencing is set for December 11, 2026.

What Happened

On Tuesday, November 3, 2026, a Pierce County, Washington, jury found Urbano-Vazquez guilty of the aggravated first-degree murder of Sharon Van Gilder. The verdict came more than 24 years after Van Gilder, a mother of two, left the Golden Rooster Tavern in Tacoma with two men in March 2002 and never came home. Her naked, battered body was found dumped on a rural South Hill road, and prosecutors told the jury her killer's DNA was inside her.

The jury also convicted him of first-degree rape with a deadly weapon and second-degree rape, for attacks on three other Tacoma women that year. Prosecutors said the four attacks were one violent spree running from March to October 2002. Related coverage: After 48 Years, DNA Identifies 'Montauk Mary' as Sofia Marrone in Long Island Cold Case.

The Sharon Van Gilder Murder

Van Gilder was 39 when she was killed. She left Tacoma's Golden Rooster Tavern with Urbano-Vazquez and another man in March 2002, and was raped and strangled; her body was dumped on a country road in South Hill, where it was found naked and battered. For a decade the case sat unsolved. Then, in 2012, DNA testing linked Urbano-Vazquez to the killing, but he had already been deported from the United States to Mexico, and there was no one to arrest.

Van Gilder was the first victim in the string of attacks prosecutors laid out at trial. In June 2002, Urbano-Vazquez picked up a 34-year-old homeless woman hitchhiking toward Seattle, took her to a garage, struck her with a wrench and raped her as she bled, prosecutors said. In August, he and two other men raped and beat a 29-year-old woman in the same garage. Two months later, he and a younger man picked up a 40-year-old woman at a bar, cut her throat and raped her in an alley. At least two of the three later attacks involved other men, some never caught.

Background and Context

The case turned on DNA, and on how long it took to act on it. The sample linking Urbano-Vazquez to the murder was matched in 2012, a decade after the killing, but he was already gone, deported to Mexico; it was not immediately clear when or why. In 2019, authorities tracked him to Chimalhuacán, about 22 miles east of Mexico City. The FBI arrested him there in March 2023, and he was extradited to Pierce County in May 2025 to stand trial.

The extradition was celebrated as a breakthrough for a case that had seemed closed for good. FBI Special Agent in Charge W. Mike Herrington said then: "This extradition should send a message to those who commit violence in our communities: you can run, but you can't hide." He added: "Thanks to strong international partnerships, Mr. Urbano-Vazquez has learned that lesson first-hand and now will face justice here in the State of Washington for his horrific actions threatening our community."

The long road to trial is a familiar cold-case pattern: a DNA match is only useful if the person it points to can be found and brought to court. Here that took 11 years from the match, and 23 years from the murder. Also read: Netflix Docuseries Shows Van der Sloot Taking $25,000 in FBI Sting Over Holloway.

Reactions

Van Gilder's family praised the other victims for testifying, saying their courage helped deliver the verdict. Brenda Doty, a cousin of the murdered mother, said: "Our families [are] thankful ... that this monster can never hurt anybody again." For families who waited more than two decades, the verdict meant not only a conviction, but the certainty that Urbano-Vazquez will never be free again.

Prosecutors built the case on DNA evidence and the surviving victims' testimony, which linked the 2002 attacks into a single pattern. The verdict on all counts, including aggravated first-degree murder, brings the most serious penalty in Washington short of death: life in prison without parole.

Why It Matters

The conviction matters for three reasons. First, it closes a 24-year-old murder that once looked unsolvable, giving Van Gilder's family an answer after decades of waiting. Second, it shows how DNA and international cooperation can reach across borders and decades: a man deported before he was identified as a suspect was still found, arrested and returned to face a jury. Third, it shows how much cold-case work depends on survivors, whose testimony tied the murder to a single spree.

The case is also not entirely closed: at least two of the later attacks involved other men, and some have never been caught. Their identities remain an open question the verdict does not answer.

What Happens Next

Urbano-Vazquez faces sentencing on December 11, 2026. The aggravated first-degree murder conviction guarantees life in prison without parole, so the hearing will formalise a punishment the jury has already made inevitable. He remains in custody until then.

For the families, sentencing will be the final formal step in a case that began in March 2002. For investigators, the work continues on the unanswered part: the other men involved in the 2002 attacks, some never identified. Also read: Virginia Parents Charged After Teen Party Draws 300 to $3.2M McLean Home.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Miguel Urbano-Vazquez?
Miguel Urbano-Vazquez, 50, was convicted on November 3, 2026, of the 2002 murder of Sharon Van Gilder in Tacoma, Washington, and of raping three other women there that year.

Who was Sharon Van Gilder?
Sharon Van Gilder was a 39-year-old mother of two, raped and strangled in March 2002 after leaving Tacoma's Golden Rooster Tavern. Her body was found dumped on a rural road in South Hill.

How was Urbano-Vazquez caught?
DNA linked him to the killing in 2012, but he had been deported to Mexico. Authorities tracked him to Chimalhuacán in 2019, the FBI arrested him in March 2023, and he was extradited in May 2025.

What sentence does he face?
The aggravated first-degree murder conviction carries life in prison without parole. Sentencing is set for December 11, 2026.

Were others involved in the 2002 attacks?
Yes, in part: at least two of the three other rapes involved other men, some never caught.