14 DAY TRIAL // A man who fled a murder charge in 1979 has been arrested at a Chicago airport, NBC Chicago reports. Ata Yousef El Ammouri is believed to have shot and killed a man over an unpaid can of beer.
In 1979, El Ammouri was the owner of a convenience store in Chicago. When Joe Harris, 31, walked out of it with a can of beer that he had not paid for, El Ammouri shot him.
He was charged with murder and posted $100,000 (€77,142) bail, after which he fled the country.
“Ata Yousef El Ammouri was taken into custody around 5 p.m. Friday at Chicago's O’Hare International Airport in Chicago after he arrived from Jordan, police said. He was traveling to the United States to attend a graduation,” the aforementioned media outlet says.
He is now being held without bail and will appear in court on June 10.
“Today’s capture of Ata Yousef El Ammouri should send a message that the simple passage of time does not eradicate our commitment to bringing fugitives to justice,” a police statement reads.