Seven-time deported immigrant pleads insanity to murder charges

October 25. A man charged with murdering a Hamilton man last summer has changed his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity, according to court records.

In July, a grand jury indicted Fermin Garcia-Gutierrez on charges of aggravated murder, murder (two counts), felonious assault (two counts) and kidnapping with a firearm in connection with the death of a man found in a Hamilton garage in April.

Last summer, Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones called a news conference pointing to Garcia-Gutierrez as a repeat offender who had been deported seven times.

The charges in the latest indictment relate to one murder, but the multiple charges relate to different subsections of the law rather than allegedly committing multiple murders.

At his arraignment, Butler County Common Pleas Judge Jennifer McElfresh set bail at $5 million cash or surety.

Garcia-Gutierrez returned to court Thursday for a pretrial hearing where his lawyer, Keith Fricker, pleaded insanity and questioned his fitness to stand trial.

“Counsel had numerous interviews with the defendant and other friends and family members, and each time, counsel asked genuine questions regarding the defendant’s competency and mental stability,” Fricker said in a written motion.

Fricker said Garcia-Gutierrez may have suffered a brain injury from years of drug use or blows to the head.

The judge set a hearing for November 7 to consider the appointment of a forensic psychologist.

Oviedo, 41, was found dead April 1 after Hamilton police received a call about a body in the 1100 block of South 13th Street.

Investigators believe Garcia-Gutierrez committed the murder before he was arrested on other charges.

Jones said Garcia-Gutierrez exemplifies his frustration with the Biden administration’s immigration and border policies.

Jones said Garcia-Gutierrez has been in prison three times and deported to Mexico seven times but continues to return.

“He says it will take him two weeks to get back,” the sheriff said.