The U.S. Embassy in Mexico has praised Mexican authorities for extraditing a man to the United States to face charges of rape and other crimes allegedly committed in the late 1990s.

The embassy says Mexican-born fugitive Ruben Hernandez Martinez was extradited to the U.S. Tuesday.

Martinez is accused of a series of home break-ins, sexual assaults and burglaries in Nashville, Tennessee (in southern United States) between 1997 and 1998. The former construction worker later fled to Mexico, but was arrested by Mexican authorities in 2002.

U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Tony Garza says Martinez is an "exceptionally" dangerous criminal who will now have to account for the crimes he allegedly committed against the people of Tennessee.

Garza says the extradition of Martinez is an example of successful cooperation between the U.S. and Mexican governments.

The ambassador says Mexico has already extradited or deported 53 fugitives to the U.S. this year, and more will follow in the coming months.

Martinez has appeared on the FBI's list of "Ten Most Wanted" fugitives. He had appealed unsuccessfully to Mexican authorities to block his extradition.

Some information for this report was provided by AP.