A 25-YEAR-OLD man convicted of murder in his absence has been arrested in Kosovo, police have revealed.

Gerald Mitre, 25, also known as Aldo Aliaj, was convicted when jurisdiction of the case was transferred from the UK to Albania.

Mitre murdered 24-year old Aaron Stokes in the Centrepoint Hostel, New Cross, on January 2 2006.

He stabbed Aaron in the chest after discovering that his sister, who also resided at the hostel, had been intimately involved with the victim.

Mitre fled the scene before the police arrived.

His sister initially lied to officers telling them that an unknown intruder had stabbed Aaron and later claimed responsibility for the murder herself.

She was charged with murder and perverting the course of justice, but just before the start of her trial finally admitted that it was her brother Gerald who had committed the murder.

News Shopper: Aaron Stokes, 24, was stabbed to death in New Cross, in 2006 Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Service's Homicide and Serious Crime Command launched a national manhunt to find Mitre, but by early 2007 intelligence began to suggest he had fled to Albania.

The case was transferred to Albania and a two-day hearing was held in the UK in June 2009.

Last January, the Albanian judges ruled that Mitre was guilty of murder and sentenced him to 14 years in a high security Albanian prison.

Mitre was arrested in Kosovo in December and currently awaits extradition to Albania.

Detective Inspector Nick Sumner, who led the murder investigation, said: "I am pleased for Aaron's family. They have displayed great patience, dignity and understanding in their wait to achieve justice for the senseless murder of their son.

"As Mitre awaits extradition to Albania to serve his sentence they are even closer to getting the justice they deserve.

"Whilst Mitre managed to flee the UK, he could not escape British law.”