AP – Colton Harris-Moore exits a plane handcuffed as he is escorted by police upon arrival to Nassau, Bahamas
I’m always intrigued by criminals who seem to put themselves and others in danger, and yet gain folk hero status somehow. Here’s a good recent case as reported by Yahoo:
>>NASSAU, Bahamas – For two years he stayed a step ahead of the law—stealing cars, powerboats and even airplanes, police say, while building a reputation as a 21st-century folk hero. On Sunday, Colton Harris-Moore’s celebrity became his downfall.
Witnesses on the Bahamian island of Eleuthera recognized the 19-year-old dubbed the “Barefoot Bandit” and called police, who captured him after a high-speed boat chase, Bahamas Police Commissioner Ellison Greenslade said at a celebratory news conference in Nassau, the capital.
Greenslade said shots were fired during the water chase but he did not say who fired them. He also said Harris-Moore was carrying a handgun that he tried to throw away.
Another senior police official, however, said police fired to disable the motor on the suspect’s stolen boat, and that Harris-Moore threw his gun in the water. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the case, also said that police recovered a laptop and a GPS locator from the suspect.