TIJUANA – State authorities captured an American citizen who was a federal fugitive in the United States, accused of drug trafficking.

The man was identified as José Ignacio Garcia Jr., 30, a Chula Vista native, according to a release issued Tuesday by the Baja California State Preventive Police. It did not say when the arrest was made.

The international liaison of that department, Alfredo Arenas, said Garcia’s capture was the result of information that had been shared between Baja California and U.S. authorities.

Based on intelligence they gathered, state police agents carried out an operation in the Cañadas neighborhood of the eastside district of El Florido, where the suspect apparently was hiding.

The agents observed a suspect who closely resembled the U.S. federal fugitive. The agents approached the man, who attempted to flee but was immediately detained, Arenas said. García was later turned over to U.S. authorities.

A total of 422 foreign fugitives have been captured in Baja California since 2002, of which 263 have been captured by the current state administration; 65 so far this year.

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