An illegal alien is accused of murdering a 66-year-old cab driver in upstate New York, a sanctuary jurisdiction, after a dispute over cab fare.

Santos Paulino Vasquez-Ramirez, a 28-year-old illegal alien from Guatemala, has been arrested by the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office and charged with second-degree murder and first-degree robbery.

According to police, on December 1, 66-year-old Aurelio Zhunio-Orbez was driving his cab when he picked up Vasquez-Ramirez in Brewster, New York. Later that day, Zhunio-Orbez’s cab was found abandoned in a nearby parking lot.

On December 7, Zhunio-Orbez’s body was found in the Croton Falls Reservoir.

Police later arrested Vasquez-Ramirez and said that the illegal alien confessed to strangling Zhunio-Orbez, killing him, and dumping his body in the lake.

“The investigation involved a comprehensive review of video surveillance, forensic evidence, and information developed through coordinated efforts with partner agencies,” Putnam County Sheriff Brian Hess said in a statement.

“Investigators canvassed numerous surveillance systems and analyzed evidence that ultimately led to the identification and arrest of the suspect,” Hess said. “Forensic evidence, including blood and DNA, was recovered and submitted for analysis, with testing ongoing.”

Now, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is seeking custody of Vasquez-Ramirez to ensure he is not released by the sanctuary state of New York.

“Santos Vasquez-Ramirez should’ve never been in our country in the first place and provided the opportunity to gruesomely take the life of Aurelio Zhunio-Orbez,” the Department of Homeland Security’s Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.

“Open border policies have deadly consequences. ICE lodged an arrest detainer with local authorities to ensure this criminal illegal alien is never allowed back into American neighborhoods,” McLaughlin said. “Under President Trump and Secretary Noem, ICE is targeting the worst of the worst.”

Vasquez-Ramirez first crossed the southern border in October 2013 and was released into the United States interior by the Obama administration. In January 2016, Vasquez-Ramirez was given a final deportation order by a federal immigration judge.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.