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JOGGING MURDERER EVADES
CAPTURE;
U.S. MARSHALS TURN UP THE HEAT WITH ADDITION TO 15 MOST WANTED LIST
 Washington,
D.C. – Escaped murderer,
Richard Lee
McNair, has a way with words. He proved it when he convinced a police
officer in Ball, Louisiana, last week that he was just out for a jog and the
officer let him go. What the officer didn’t know was this casual jogger had
just escaped from the Federal Penitentiary in Pollock, Louisiana. McNair is
still on the run.
The U.S. Marshals have turned up the heat to
put McNair back behind bars by adding him to their 15 Most Wanted fugitive
list and offering a $25,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.
Authorities believe McNair, who is serving
three life sentences for murder, attempted murder and burglary in North
Dakota, escaped after concealing himself in a secret compartment under a
pallet of mail bags and was transported on a truck from the prison to a
local mail facility, where he broke out from his hiding place and escaped.
“McNair should be considered armed and
dangerous,” said U.S. Marshal William Whittington of the Western District of
Louisiana. “He is a martial arts expert with a history of violence and
should not be approached.”
Not only does McNair have a history of
violence, he has a history of escapes. The escape from the detention center
in Pollock was his third escape since his murder conviction in 1987. His
other escapes included one from a North Dakota county jail in 1988, and the
second in 1992 from a penitentiary in the same state.
"Dangerous fugitives such as this are given
the highest priority by the Marshals Service because of the potential to
harm other innocent citizens while they remain at large," said Robert J.
Finan II, head of the U.S. Marshals Investigative Services Division.
McNair, 47, is 6 feet tall, 210 pounds with
brown hair and blue eyes. He wears glasses and was last seen with a
goatee-type beard. He has scars on his left wrist and on both knees.
Again, there is a reward for information
leading to the arrest of McNair, and all inquiries remain confidential.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the U.S. Marshals Service
office at (318) 676-4200, or the Marshals’ 24 hour phone line at
1-800-336-0102. The U.S. Penitentiary in Pollock can also be contacted at
(318) 561-5384.
U.S. Marshals are the nation’s primary
fugitive hunting organization and capture more federal fugitives each year
than all other law enforcement agencies combined. For more information, go
to www.usmarshals.gov.
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