News
'Barefoot bandit' to appear in court
By: cnn.comPosted On: 07/14/2010 1:40 P
Colton Harris-Moore, the teenager dubbed the "barefoot bandit," will appear in federal court in Miami Wednesday afternoon.
The 19-year-old was taken into custody on Harbour Island in the Bahamas early Sunday.
He was sought in a string of home and airport break-ins in various U.S. locations along with thefts of vehicles.
In the Bahamas, Harris-Moore pleaded guilty to a charge of illegally landing a plane, paid a $300 fine and was ordered deported, his lawyer said.
He was then flown to Miami on Tuesday, the FBI said.
Typically in extradition cases, the accused makes a first appearance in the federal court closest to where he was arrested, said Emily Langlie, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Western District of Washington.
The Southern District of Florida, in Miami, is the closest jurisdiction to the Bahamas, said Langlie.
In his initial U.S. appearance, he will be told of his rights and read an initial charge of interstate transportation of stolen property, Langlie said.
The complaint, which was sealed until last week, was filed last December and stems from his allegedly stealing a plane in Bonner's Ferry, Idaho, and crashing it outside Granite Falls, Washington, she said.
U.S. marshals will then take him to the Western District of Washington in Seattle.
Under the federal system, the case will then go to a grand jury. If an indictment is returned, more charges could be filed.
The federal charge of interstate transportation of stolen goods carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison.
Federal prosecutors are working with other states to determine the best way to go forward in this case, but the Washington courts will get him first since he was arrested on their warrant, Langlie said.
"He seems to be very remorseful," attorney Monique Gomez told CNN in a telephone interview from Nassau about her client.
Asked whether he acknowledges guilt in the other cases, his lawyer said, "Let me put it this way -- he wishes he had done things a little differently in his life."
Still, she added, he appeared "in good spirits."
Authorities in Madison County, Nebraska, issued an arrest warrant for Harris-Moore last month on charges of burglary and theft by unlawful taking or deception. The affidavit supporting the warrant alleges the youth waged a crime spree.
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