Arzu was one of the most influential politicians in Guatemala and had been mayor of the capital since 2004, but last year he was added to a long list of influential politicians under investigation for alleged corruption.
Local media reported that he had suffered a heart attack while playing a round of golf and was taken to a hospital, where he died.
Presidential spokesman Heinz Heimann confirmed to Reuters that he had died, but could not comment on the circumstances or cause of death.
“Guatemala has lost a great man who dedicated his life to service,” President Jimmy Morales said in a post on Twitter.
Arzu served as president from 1996-2000, overseeing the signing of peace accords in 1996 to end 36 years of civil war, during which some 250,000 people were killed or disappeared.
Last year, he was accused by the attorney general and a U.N. anti-corruption body of creating fake payrolls in the municipal government and using public funds for his 2015 re-election bid.
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