In the quiet town of Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, a grim discovery brought a tragic end to a multi-state manhunt in July of 2018. Christopher Gerard Caggiano, a 41-year-old Caucasian male, was found deceased in his white 2017 Nissan Rogue. His death was the final chapter in a harrowing tale that began days earlier in Las Vegas, Nevada. Residents of the small Idaho community had noticed the vehicle parked on a street for several days, prompting them to alert the authorities.
When deputies from the Bannock County Sheriff's Office arrived on Tuesday, they initially thought the man in the backseat was merely sleeping. A closer inspection revealed the tragic reality: Caggiano was dead from what was later determined to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The events that led Caggiano to this desperate end in Idaho began to unfold on a Saturday morning in Las Vegas. A 9-year-old girl placed a chilling 911 call, reporting that her mother was lying in a pool of blood inside her father's townhouse. The victim was identified as 32-year-old Cheri Louise Anaya. She had been shot in the head and neck. Homicide detectives in Las Vegas quickly identified Christopher Caggiano, a senior correctional officer with the Nevada Department of Corrections, as the primary suspect. Investigators learned that Caggiano and Anaya, who had been staying at his home temporarily with their two children, had been arguing the night before her death. By the time police arrived at the scene, Caggiano had already fled.
The search for Caggiano spanned several days and crossed state lines, culminating in the discovery in Lava Hot Springs. It remains unclear why he chose the small Idaho town as his final destination. The Bannock County coroner estimated that Caggiano had likely been deceased since the Saturday evening he disappeared from Las Vegas. His suicide left his two young children without either of their parents. The investigation concluded with Caggiano as the sole suspect in Cheri Anaya's murder, and with his own death, the case was closed.
