Colton A. Harris-Moore, of Camano Island, Washington, otherwise known as the “Barefoot Bandit” was apprehended today by the the Bahamas police after a short boat-chase near Harbour Island. Harris-Moore was flown to Nassau, Bahamas, where he will have a court appearance later this week.
Harris-Moore, 19 years, who has eluded cops in the United States for more than two years, had a federal warrant issued for his arrest in December 2009, after stealing an airplane on September 29, 2009. The plane crash-landed after running out of fuel 260 miles near Snohomish, Washington.
On October 2, 2009, a second local felony arrest warrant was issued for Harris-Moore and he was charged with forced entry burglary/ burglary in the second degree.
Most recently, in July of 2010, Harris-Moore stole an airplane from Bloomington, Indiana, and flew it to the Bahamas, where it crashed in shallow waters off the coast of Abaco Island.
Since Harris-Moore’s escape from the group home, over seventy investigations have been initiated for which he is alleged to be the prime suspect. These crimes include residential and commercial burglaries, vehicle thefts, assaults on law enforcement officers, bank burglaries, boat thefts, and aircraft thefts. These crimes have been committed throughout the Pacific Northwest, including Washington State, Idaho, Oregon, and several locations in Canada.
The FBI said that it was great police work by the Bahamas police and the sharing of crucial information by the police departments in Washington, Idaho, Nebraska and Indiana that let to Harris-Moore’s arrest today.
The Bahamian authorities have said that Harris-Moore would have to answer charges in that country first, before he is extradited to the U.S.
