UPDATE: The man who was recently arrested in the Dominican Republic is not in fact Romania's most wanted Codrut Marta, according to Romania's Police, after comparing data sent by the Dominican Republic Police.

Police in the Dominican Republic believe they have arrested Romanian fugitive Codrut Marta. The Romanian, who is on the Interpol wanted list, was arrested in the Caribbean island state with a fake Lithuanian passport under the name Arei Argead, according to news service El Caribe.

The local police spokesman General Máximo Báez Aybar said the man had been identified as Codrut Alexandru Marta. According to the Romanian media, Romanian police were in contact via Interpol with the Dominican police, but it was only in the last few days that Codrut Marta's presence in the country was unequivocally confirmed.

Codrut Marta formerly held a high level position in Romania's tax authority, being the former adviser and chief of cabinet for the Tax Administration head Sorin Blejnar. Marta disappeared in late May amid suspicions of his involvement in a EUR 20 million fraud case. Since then he has been on the run, hunted by Romanian police and Interpol.

In the meantime, police have charged his wife Andreea Marta with running a luxury international prostitution ring.

Liam Lever, liam@romania-insider.com