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For Immediate Release

 Contact:
November 13, 2009 William Taylor, Senior Inspector,
United States Marshals (937)225-2917
USMS Headquarters Public Affairs (202) 307-9065
Friday the 13th an Unlucky Day for Ohio Sex Offender

Cathy J. Jones, Acting United States Marshal for the Southern District of Ohio and Montgomery County Sheriff Phil Plummer, announce the arrest of Lawrence W. Yancey. Yancey, who has an extensive criminal history to include assault, domestic violence, arson, robbery, and drugs is also a convicted sex offender after he was convicted of Unlawful Sexual Conduct with a Minor in the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas in October 2004. Yancey, who was 37 at the time of the offense, had engaged in an illegal sexual relationship with a 15 year-old girl.

Authorities say that in June 2009, Yancey allegedly tried to have oral sex with another 15 year old female and after the attempt failed, he hit the streets. When numerous attempts to locate Yancey in Dayton had failed, authorities learned that he may have fled Ohio and headed for Los Angeles, California. In his attempt to elude authorities on this pending charge, Yancey violated the conditions of his sex offender registration and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Sex Offender Registration Unit picked up the case. In September, after confirming information that Yancey had in fact fled Ohio, the sheriff’s office teamed up with the U.S. Marshals who began investigating Yancey for federal failure to register violations pursuant to the Adam Walsh Act, which makes it a federal violation for sex offenders to travel to new jurisdictions in order to avoid registration.

The U.S. Marshals in Dayton secured a federal arrest warrant and immediately contacted the U.S. Marshals in Los Angeles to pass on the lead that Yancey was visiting several homeless shelters and receiving assistance from two Los Angeles County relief organizations. The Marshals in Los Angeles investigated this information and narrowed the search. On the morning of November 13, the U.S. Marshals located and arrested Yancey at one of the area homeless shelters. Yancey will appear before a federal magistrate in Los Angeles before being extradited back to Ohio where he could be facing a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison.

Sheriff Plummer and his office are working closely with the U.S. Marshal's Office. This cooperation will certainly lead to additional apprehensions of violent criminals and sexual offenders wanted in the Montgomery County Area.