Manuel Benitez Wanted for Murder, Child Abduction
As a child actor, Mark Everett scored bit parts in the movies “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” and “Stand and Deliver,” and his future seemed bright.
He worked steadily as an actor in the 1980s, from ages 9 to 18. Though he never had a starring role, he appeared in commercials, movies and television shows like “Trapper John M.D.” and “Highway to Heaven.”
But as he got older, the rising star's career burned out. Everett — whose real name is Manuel Benitez — moved to Miami and, according to the FBI, sold drugs to supplement the money he made doing odd jobs.
He would come to play a real-life role far bigger and more notorious than any of his on-screen personas: a fugitive wanted for killing his girlfriend and abducting their son.
In 1996, Benitez, 26, met Stephanie Spears, and he won her over with his sociable, grandiose way. But the man Stephanie and her family knew was Mark Everett. They didn't know Benitez, or his drug-dealing past.
Benitez “honed his acting skills into fooling people about what he can and cannot do,” said FBI Special Agent Scott Garriola, the agent in Los Angeles working on his case. He said Benitez professed to speak several languages, including Cantonese, German, Spanish and French.
Child Actor Wanted for Murder, Child Abduction
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