Jorge Montiel fled to his hometown near Pachuca, Mexico, after he was alleged to have raped and murdered a Georgia housewife in October 2010.

Federal agents tried to bring the international fugitive to justice, but something stood in the way: the cost.

When the U.S. Justice Department called Forsyth County prosecutors to explain America’s complex extradition process and to say the county would have to pay for translation and other fees, “the decision was made by Forsyth County to discontinue that effort,” FBI spokesman Stephen Emmett told the Tribune.

And with that, Montiel became just another of the thousands of criminal suspects now living with impunity in foreign countries — even when federal authorities have identified their precise locations.

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