An Albanian man who was granted asylum and British citizenship has been caught in the United States after being responsible for three murders.
Sokol Hoxha, 50, was taken into custody in Kettering, Ohio, following decades of evading justice across multiple countries.
His crimes date back to 1997, when he killed two brothers in Albania and his 19-year-old wife in Belgium.
After fleeing continental Europe, Hoxha arrived in Britain under an assumed identity.
He falsely presented himself as a refugee from Kosovo, a deception that enabled him to secure both asylum status and eventually British citizenship.
The capture, which brought to a close nearly three decades of evasion by the convicted killer, represented the conclusion of a six-year fugitive investigation coordinated by Interpol Washington alongside law enforcement agencies from multiple nations.
A spokesman for the US Marshals Service said: “During the investigation, authorities determined that Hoxha assumed a fraudulent identity after fleeing Belgium and subsequently obtained citizenship in another European country under the alias.
“Hoxha later allegedly entered the US and obtained lawful permanent resident status while continuing to conceal his true identity.”
Hoxha relocated to America in 2012, maintaining his false persona for an additional 14 years before his apprehension.
The spokesman added: “Hoxha’s case serves as a powerful example of how sustained international law enforcement cooperation can overcome national boundaries, jurisdictional challenges, and decades of evasion to bring a convicted murderer to justice after nearly 30 years on the run.”
Hoxha received a 25-year prison sentence in absentia for the double murder of the brothers in Patos, Albania.
The killing of his teenage wife allegedly occurred after she rejected his demands that she work as a prostitute. Two Interpol red notices had been issued for the fugitive in connection with the three deaths, The Sunday Telegraph reports.
Both the National Crime Agency and Home Office reportedly participated in the lengthy investigation.
Their work helped trace Hoxha’s movements and verify his immigration status during the period he resided in Britain, which spanned at least a decade before his departure for North America.
The US Marshals Service emphasised the US would not provide sanctuary for foreign criminals who obtain immigration status through fraud.
Hoxha’s case forms part of a broader pattern of Albanian criminals exploiting Britain’s asylum system by adopting false Kosovan identities. Avni Metra, another double murderer, obtained asylum and a British passport by posing as a Kosovo war refugee.
He too had been sentenced to 25 years in absentia before eventually being sent back to Albania.
Afrim Sinani arrived in Britain in 1998 using the fabricated name Afrim Pulaj, claiming Kosovan refugee status despite a 20-year murder conviction in Albania.
His extradition followed protracted legal proceedings in 2010.
Arsimi Murati, 46, successfully challenged the Home Secretary’s efforts to revoke his citizenship after concealing both his true nationality and a lengthy Albanian prison term for armed robbery.
Ilir Kumbaro, a former Albanian secret service branch director convicted of kidnapping and torture, similarly acquired a British passport under a false name before vanishing whilst on extradition bail.
