July 3 (Bloomberg) -- A man accused of working in Austria as a Nazi concentration camp guard during World War II is in U.S. custody in Michigan after 16 years as a fugitive, the Associated Press reported.

Johann Leprich, 77, was arrested yesterday at his home in Clinton Township, located about 25 miles (40 kilometers) north of Detroit, AP said, citing the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In 1987, Leprich's U.S. citizenship was rescinded for lying about his military service and he fled to Canada, AP said.

Leprich's application for citizenship said he served in the Hungarian Army, with no mention of being a guard at the Mauthausen concentration camp. Almost 200,000 people were reported to be killed at that camp, AP said, citing immigration bureau spokesman Greg Palmore.

He came to the U.S. in 1952 and was granted citizenship six years later. Federal law bars anyone who was a guard or worker at a concentration camp from becoming a citizen, AP said.

AP attempted to reach relatives of Leprich by calling all phone listings with that surname in that part of Michigan, though wasn't successful.

(AP 7-3)

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Last Updated: July 3, 2003 09:45 EDT