Sex crimes fugitive wanted in Moorhead for nearly 22 years arrested in Mexico

UPDATE – The FBI says Curtis Brovold was flown to Minneapolis Thursday night and has been transferred to Clay County authorities’ custody.

CANCUN, Mexico (KVRR) – Nearly 22 years ago Curtis Brovold was charged for allegedly having sex with a 14-year-old girl at a local hotel, but didn’t show up to his court hearing in Moorhead.

The law caught up with Brovold. The now 67-year-old is accused of flying to Minnesota and meeting a teen girl.

“It was one of the first cases that we prosecuted where a perpetrator had met a young girl online and made arrangements to meet her in a hotel in Moorhead, so, yep I remember the case very well,” Former Clay County Attorney Lisa Borgin said.

Brovold was arrested, posted a $40,000 bond and then was gone.

“We did have a really good search regionally and then because we did have an FBI office here and people here they took over the case in helping us find the guy,” Borgin said.

Recently detectives from Moorhead Police and FBI agents discovered Brovold was living in Cancun, Mexico.

Working through the U.S. embassy there, authorities arrested Brovold outside his home without a fight Wednesday afternoon.

“I think he went to Mexico immediately. It seems to me that they were able to track him in Mexico that same year, so if that’s where they found him, that’s probably where he’s been the entire time,” Borgin said.

Brovold will be flown back to the U.S. and is expected to be transferred to local law enforcement.

“The FBI has two things on its side when working fugitive cases: persistence and a very long memory. Both helped lead us to Curtis Brovold,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Michael Paul said.

“We are pleased that justice was not denied for the victim in this case simply from Brovold’s fleeing out of the U.S.,” Moorhead Police Chief Shannon Monroe said.