DAMASCUS, Syria (Reuters) — Syrian security forces have arrested a former Assad-era security officer who fled Austria after being sentenced to eight years in prison for abusing detainees and returned to his hometown in southern Syria, state news agency SANA said on Tuesday night.

Lt. Col. Musab Abu Rukbah was arrested in the city of Nawa in Daraa province by internal security forces in coordination with the counter-terrorism department, SANA said, citing the security forces.

Abu Rukbah was convicted by a Vienna court last month of bodily harm, aggravated coercion and sexual assault against detained opponents of former president Bashar al-Assad while he headed the police’s criminal investigations department in the northern city of Raqqa more than a decade ago.

He had pleaded not guilty.

Reuters reported on Friday that Abu Rukbah had left Austria while challenging his eight-year sentence on appeal, and arrived in Nawa in early August, where his family held a reception to celebrate his return.

SANA said on Tuesday that Abu Rukbah had entered Syria illegally after fleeing Austria and that authorities had tracked him down in Nawa. He had been referred to the relevant authorities to complete legal procedures ahead of prosecution, it said.

ألقت قوى الأمن الداخلي في محافظة درعا، بالتعاون مع إدارة مكافحة الإرهاب، القبض على المقدم........

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