crimes and misdemeanors

Officials Briefly Lost the New Ricin Suspect

Federal agents wearing hazardous material suits and breathing apparatus exit the home and possessions in the West Hills Subdivision house of Paul Kevin Curtis in Corinth, Miss., Friday, April 19, 2013. Curtis is in custody under the suspicion of sending letters covered in ricin to the U.S. President Barack Obama and U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Photo: Rogelio V. Solis

Federal investigators are taking a lot of heat these days, and this does not inspire confidence: After placing new ricin suspect J. Everett Dutschke (the tae kwon do instructor and alleged child molester, not the Elvis impersonator) under surveillance, the FBI lost track of him on Thursday. The FBI and local police looked for Dutschke, who hasn’t been arrested or charged, for five hours, searching a former client’s family vacation home in Marietta, Mississippi. A friend later told the Associated Press that he and Dutschke slipped away by running through the woods behind Dutschke’s house to meet someone who drove them to another location. Supposedly Dutschke was just trying to get away from the media, and his lawyer said the FBI was “satisfied” when she told them where he’s staying.

Officials Briefly Lost the New Ricin Suspect