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Mexican fugitive nabbed in L.A. after two decades
Tue Jul 12, 2005 8:00 PM ET

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A convicted bank robber who has been on the run since his dramatic escape from a Mexican prison in the 1980s has been captured in Los Angeles, U.S. authorities said on Tuesday.

Alfredo Rios Galeana, considered one of Mexico's most wanted fugitives for a string of violent bank robberies in the 1970s and 1980s, was taken into custody on Monday following a nearly two-decade manhunt, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Virginia Kice said.

Rios Galeana, wanted in Mexico on charges of murder, kidnapping and robbery, was flown back to Mexico City under heavy security.

The 51-year-old fugitive arrived at a special law enforcement hangar used for high-profile cases in Mexico City. The number of police officers and journalists on hand for his return caused traffic to grind to a near halt.

Rios Galeana had been on the run since breaking out of a Mexican federal penitentiary in 1986 with the aid of eight armed commandos who blew a hole through a prison wall with a hand grenade.

Kice said Rios Galeana was arrested by federal agents after investigators for the California Department of Motor Vehicles received a tip on his whereabouts.

He underwent plastic surgery to disguise his appearance but authorities verified his identity through fingerprints. He had been living in South Gate, a suburb of Los Angeles, under the alias Arturo Montoya, U.S. officials said.

(Additional reporting by Mexico City bureau)