Calif. dad accused of killing girlfriend, 2 sons

ORANGE, Calif. – A Southern California father captured after a freeway chase was booked early Friday in the deaths of his girlfriend and the couple's two young boys, police said.

The bodies haven't been found.

Evidence in the blood-splattered Orange County apartment of Shazer Fernando Limas, 31, and his statements to investigators led to his arrest for murder, Orange police Sgt. Dan Adams said.

"We are confident this is our suspect," Adams said.

Fernando Limas was arrested hours earlier, after an Interstate 5 car chase that shut down the freeway near San Onofre for an hour. A spike strip was used to flatten the tires on his Nissan 350Z.

Fernando Limas doesn't have an attorney.

Evidence indicates the victims were killed about three weeks ago after an altercation in the apartment they shared in Orange, and the bodies were dumped elsewhere, Adams said.

Investigators were searching several Southern California areas for the bodies of 31-year-old Arlet Hernandez Contreras and the couple's 4-month-old and 2-year-old sons.

The wide-ranging search encompasses surrounding counties, Adams said, adding Fernando Limas has been talking with investigators.

"We are checking all options," Adams said.

Sheriff's cadaver-sniffing dogs were used to search the nearby Brea dump in case the bodies were placed in a trash container at the apartment complex. Adams said investigators were taking a proactive approach and didn't have any information that the bodies were at the landfill.

The search, which ended at about 8 a.m., didn't turn up any bodies.

Investigators don't know if the victims were shot, stabbed or beaten.

"He moved out of the apartment several days ago," Adams said. "When management went in the apartment, the management found suspicious things that led them to call us."

Fernando Limas was spotted in the Costa Mesa area late Thursday afternoon.

When police tried to stop him, Fernando Limas fled on what became a freeway chase that ended at about 7:40 p.m. near the U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint near San Onofre, Adams said.