Interpol Fugitive Wanted for Murder in DR Arrested by U.S. Marshals Task Force in NJ

Hackensack, NJ - The subject of an Interpol Red Notice, wanted for a July 10, 2016, murder in the Dominican Republic was arrested Thursday by U.S. Marshals and Immigrations & Customs Enforcement agents with the New York/ New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force.

Kelbin Perez De Los Santos was being sought on an international arrest warrant for fatally shooting a man with a shotgun in a restaurant after a verbal altercation. The incident occurred in Los Girasoles near the capital city of Santo Domingo. Perez De Los Santos is thought to have fled the Dominican Republic shortly after the incident. The Interpol National Central Bureau in Santo Domingo issued a Red Notice in August 2016 requesting Perez De Los Santos’ arrest.

After receiving information from Interpol that Perez De Los Santos could be in the U.S., the U.S. Marshals International Investigations Branch was able to determine that the fugitive was likely residing in the Hackensack area, and on Thursday, members of the U.S. Marshals New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force, along with ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations agents, tracked Perez De Los Santos to an apartment where he was arrested on immigration violations.

De Los Santos is currently being held in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and is facing deportation back to the Dominican Republic.

The U.S. Marshals Service is the primary agency within the federal government responsible for locating and apprehending fugitives who are wanted by foreign countries and who have been identified and located in the United States. Cases are referred to the U.S. Marshals Service through Interpol Washington (USNCB), the Department of Justice-Office of International Affairs (DOJ-OIA), and through foreign embassies in the United States.

A component of the U.S. Department of Justice, Interpol Washington is co-managed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. As the designated representative to the International Criminal Police Organization  on behalf of the Attorney General, Interpol Washington serves as the national point of contact for all Interpol matters, coordinating international investigative efforts among member countries and the more than 18,000 local, state, federal, and tribal law enforcement agencies in the United States.