ICE arrests former Argentine police officer wanted for alleged involvement in clandestine detention centers


WASHINGTON – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) arrested Juan Miguel Mendez, 67, a native Argentinean on Wednesday for immigration violations. He is wanted by the Argentine government for his alleged involvement in at least two clandestine detention centers in Argentina.

In March 2006, a federal magistrate in Buenos Aires, Argentina, issued an arrest warrant for Mendez for his involvement in torture, disappearances and extrajudicial killings in connection with at least two clandestine detention centers that operated in Buenos Aires from 1976 to 1979. The warrant alleges that Mendez, a former member of the federal police, was involved with the detention, torture and disappearance of detainees from the notorious “El Olimpoâ€