MIAMI -- A 31-year-old man wanted by Argentinean authorities for a 1999 murder was arrested here Friday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements (ICE) special agents after receiving a tip from Interpol about an outstanding warrant of arrest.

Jorge Marcelo Almaraz, a national of Argentina, entered the country through Miami on April 17, 2001 under the Visa Waiver Program, under which citizens of selected countries -- including Argentina -- are allowed to enter the United States using a passport in lieu of a non-immigrant visa.

Under the program, Almaraz was given until July 16, 2001 to depart from the United States but he opted to remain in the country and break the law.

"Those who think that they can evade justice by seeking to hide in the United States need to think twice," said Jesus Torres, special agent-in-charge of ICE in Miami. "We are committed to working with our partners around the world to catch those running from the law."

An Argentinean court issued an arrest warrant for Almaraz on Feb. 10, 2004. Almaraz is being charged after he and an accomplice allegedly beat a man unconscious and subsequently bound and gagged him. The man later died from suffocation.

Under the Argentinean penal code, Almaraz, if found guilty, may face up to 25 years’ imprisonment.

Almaraz' arrest constitutes a violation of the conditions of the visa waiver, so his privilege was revoked and he will be expeditiously removed from the country. Almaraz is at the Krome Processing Center in South Florida awaiting his imminent deportation.

Argentina is no longer a selected country under the Visa Waiver Program.

-- ICE --