On Thursday, the U.S. Marshals-led Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force for the Western District of Washington, along with the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, located a missing 5-year-old child in Lynnwood, Washington.
The child, who had been abducted by her biological father Michael Stevens, 48, had been missing for three years.
On June 10, 2014, the Superior Court of California, County of Riverside, issued a warrant for the arrest of Stevens, charging him with parental child abduction, in violation of California Penal Code PC278.5.
Stevens allegedly failed to return the child to a foster family after he was authorized an unsupervised visit by the courts.
In November 2017, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office requested the assistance of the U.S. Marshals-led Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force in California.
An anonymous tip led authorities to believe Stevens may be residing in the Everett area along with the child, and going by the alias “Michael Lee.”
Authorities also discovered he was utilizing Craigslist to sell used vehicles.
Through investigative efforts by the task force and Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, Stevens was subsequently located and arrested.
He has been booked into Snohomish County Jail where he will await his extradition back to California.
The child, who was with Stevens at the time of his arrest, was turned over to Washington State Child Protective Services.
“The successful recovery of this missing 5-year-old child is a great example of multiple agencies from various jurisdictions working together to protect the most vulnerable members of our communities,” said Acting U.S. Marshal for the Western District of Washington Jacob Green.
“I would like to thank the anonymous tipster, all of the law enforcement agencies involved, to include the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office and Washington State Child Protective Services, in aiding in the safe recovery of this child.”
(Learn More about the United States Marshals Service narrated by John Walsh from America’s Most Wanted. Courtesy of Shane T. McCoy and YouTube)
The Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force is comprised of Deputy U.S. Marshals from the Western District of Washington, and other federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
Since its creation in 2010, the PNVOTF has arrested well over 13,978 violent fugitives. Of those arrested, various offenses include homicide; failure to register as a sex offender; sex crimes; firearms; and federal probation violations.
Nationally the United States Marshals Service fugitive programs are carried out with local law enforcement in 94 district offices, 85 local fugitive task forces, 7 regional task forces, as well as a growing network of offices in foreign countries.
The U.S. Marshals Service is the nation’s primary fugitive hunting organization and captures more federal fugitives each year than all other law enforcement agencies combined.
Annually, U.S. Marshals arrest more than 50 percent of all federal fugitives and serve more federal warrants than all other federal agencies combined.
Additional information about the U.S. Marshals Service can be found at http://www.usmarshals.gov.
America’s Oldest Federal Law Enforcement Agency
