Nobody knows that better than Bob Rivers, whose plane was worth $150,000. "I mean, it's an expensive hobby to have an airplane." "There's haves and have-nots in the world, and whether he's a mastermind or not, he obviously was never going to have the kind of opportunities that some people might have to have a Mercedes or to be a pilot," Stephens says. "Being good doesn't really get you very far," Stephens says. And not just because Stephens sells T-shirts bearing Harris-Moore's picture for $15 each. Guys mock the law enforcement agencies who have failed to capture the 6-foot-5, 210-pound teen.Īidin Stephens is also rooting for the runaway. Girls, taken by his almond-shaped blue eyes, beg him to visit their homes and offer to be his girlfriend. To date, there are more than 16,000 members of a fan page for Harris-Moore. The lyrics to "The Ballad of Barefoot Harris" read, "But he'd never hurt a fly, and he'd never kill a man, and he never will be found."įans as far away as Greece, Italy and Australia extend open-door invitations through the magic of Facebook. Feelings about Harris-Moore run the gamut from locals who are tired of the story - and of answering reporters' questions - to fierce fans enamored with the growing myth. Harris-Moore's fame reaches far beyond the small Puget Sound community where he is accused of invading homes and stealing credit cards. He has a growing legion of fans - and not just locally. I am very, very proud."īut he's not a boy only a mother can love. "And if he flew those planes without lessons. "He took an IQ test a few years ago and he's three points below Einstein," she says. She plans to use the profits to open an animal shelter for abused pets, something she says her son had dreamed of doing. Kohler says she's writing a book about her son's exploits. "And I like it like that, because that way I don't have any information to give to the police," she said. Over the years, police say Harris-Moore has evolved from a petty thief stealing food and blankets, to what he is today - a convicted felon on the run.ĭuring a recent appearance on a local Seattle radio show, Harris-Moore's mother, Pamela Kohler, said she has no idea where her son is hiding. But 10 of those charges are in Harris-Moore's hometown of Camano Island - Brown's jurisdiction. Harris-Moore is wanted in five counties on multiple charges. "Reasonable people would not want to idolize somebody or sensationalize somebody who's a thief," he says. He bristles at the mention of Harris-Moore's exploding popularity. "I don't understand it, myself," says county sheriff Mark Brown. Yet the only thing growing faster than Harris-Moore's alleged rap sheet is his legend. Police suspect he's stolen at least two planes, two boats and several cars, plus broken into more than 50 homes. Since then, the now-18-year-old fugitive has eluded police in Washington, Idaho and Canada, repeatedly vanishing into the woods. But soon after the nightly routine, he climbed out a second-story window and into the night. It was bed-check and he was in his pajamas. He'd been convicted of theft and possession of stolen property. At that point, he was serving time in a halfway house for youth offenders, just south of Seattle. The last time authorities had Colton Harris-Moore in custody was in April 2008. Police say the young outlaw is an amateur criminal - but a master escape artist. Colton Harris-Moore took this photo of himself on a stolen digital camera.Ĭourtesy of Island County Sheriff's OfficeĪ teen bandit from the small Washington island of Camano has been on the run for 20 months and is being touted as a modern-day Jesse James.
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