Ex-cop Dan Hiers Jr., wanted for wife's murder and child molestation, caught in China after 21 years

Dan Hiers Jr., a former Charleston police officer who was on the U.S. Marshals' 15 Most Wanted list, has been arrested in China after 21 years on the run. He is accused of murdering his wife Ludimila Hiers and committing lewd acts on a minor.

In 2004, Hiers was suspended from the police department after allegations of sexual misconduct with a child under 16. He was arrested in November of that year but released on bond. He was scheduled to surrender on additional charges on March 15, 2005, but instead fled. On the same day, authorities found his 24-year-old wife Ludimila dead in her Goose Creek home, shot in the back of the head while sleeping.

Hiers vanished immediately after the murder. The U.S. Marshals Service placed him on its 15 Most Wanted list in 2005. For two decades, his whereabouts remained unknown until he was tracked to Shanghai, China.

This week, the Marshals Service announced that Hiers was apprehended in China and returned to South Carolina. Director Gadyaces Serralta called the capture a "significant and rewarding" culmination of the long manhunt, noting that Hiers "betrayed public trust in the worst possible way."

Now 53, Hiers faces charges of murder, unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, and criminal sexual conduct with a minor. It is not yet clear if he has been formally indicted.

Friends described Ludimila Hiers as "the most delightful person to be around" and "beautiful both inside and out." The case has drawn widespread attention, with many calling for justice for the victim.

The arrest demonstrates that even decades later, fugitives can be brought to justice. Cooperation between U.S. and Chinese law enforcement was key to the capture.