U.S. Marshals arrest Oregon fugitive in Georgia 30 Years after escape

On Nov. 29, 1994, Johnson fled from a prison work detail. He was serving a state prison sentence in Oregon for sexual abuse and sodomy.

The USMS adopted this case in 2015 at the request of the Oregon Department of Corrections. Multiple leads were developed and pursued by the USMS. In 2024, new investigative technology employed by the Diplomatic Security Service developed new leads in the case.

Further investigation revealed that Johnson had stolen the identity of a child that died in Texas in January 1962. Johnson was able to obtain a copy of the child’s birth certificate, and he was eventually able to obtain a Social Security number in Texas in 1995. Johnson first obtained a Georgia Driver’s License in 1998.

Critical assistance in this case was provided by the Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force; the New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force; the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Diplomatic Security, Atlanta Resident Office; the Oregon Department of Corrections; the USMS-Middle District of Georgia; and the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office.

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caption: An Oregon fugitive serving a prison sentence for sexual abuse and sodomy and who escaped a prison work detail in 1994 has been arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service, Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force in Macon.