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Posted by deathvalleycoach on April 02, 2004 at 07:10:31:

Posted on Wednesday, March 31 @ 15:45:59 PST
Manhunt Continues

DeMeo stymied by mysterious fugitive
Search For Suspected Burglar Hiding In Northern Nye County Enters Fourth Week

By Doug McMurdo

Trackers from New Mexico were brought to northern Nye County last week to hunt down a suspect that has eluded members of several law enforcement agencies since a manhunt began March 8.

The man is wanted in several burglaries that occurred in northern Nye and at Alamo in Lincoln County since February, but police believe he might be the same person federal agents chased around Death Valley for the past six months.

"He's dug down deep somewhere," said Sheriff Tony DeMeo of the unidentified suspect. DeMeo said the man's behavior, the equipment he uses - or used until deputies tracked him to one of several campsites and seized items ranging from high-powered rifles to night vision gear - and his physical conditioning indicate he is a former well-trained member of the military or a survivalist.

Two weeks ago more than 30 members of the Nye County sheriff's office, the FBI, and other law enforcement agencies combed the rugged high desert from Tonopah to Belmont, from Railroad Valley to Manhattan. Fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and K-9 units failed to find any sign of the man. DeMeo said the suspect has stolen enough food to "lay low" for a few weeks, but the sheriff expects him to become active again. "This guy is really screwy," DeMeo said. "He started doing a lot of things, but we don't know where he is. We used helicopters, a canine team and he still eluded us." Now, only a handful of searchers are on the lookout; a quick response task force is standing by.

"If this is the same guy rangers chased around Death Valley for six months, we might not find him for awhile," said DeMeo.

In an earlier report, DeMeo said a National Park Service ranger tracked the man late last summer and came within 100 feet of the suspect. "He just started running," said DeMeo. "He ran for five miles in the heat of Death Valley. The only time he slowed down was to get around a stream. He didn't want to get muddy and leave a trail."

DeMeo defended the manpower used, and said the brunt of the cost of the manhunt could be paid for through Homeland Security funds. Possible terrorist activity was a concern, said DeMeo, since Nellis was conducting its annual Red Flag exercises in the vicinity of the search. Also, the one-year anniversary of the Iraq invasion was observed, and there are sensitive federal facilities in the area, which DeMeo said encompasses roughly 10,200 square miles. "That's over 300 times the area of the five boroughs that make up New York City," he said by way of comparison.

While DeMeo is frustrated because he has no idea who the suspect is or what his motive might be, he and Lt. Bill Becht have worked 18-hour days since March 8 and exhaustion has become a distraction.

"We go to a briefing first thing in the morning, about 5:30, and we're not in bed until 3 a.m." Communications in the harsh environment have also proven problematic. "We can't stay in contact," he said. "Even the satellite phones don't work as well as we thought they would." DeMeo said the manhunt has been somewhat of a learning experience. "We could really use a quad. This agency doesn't have one, but this situation tells me we need one. We're learning a lot from this."

As for failing to apprehend the man, DeMeo was quick to defend deputies. "It took three days to find plane wreckage earlier this year. They had 16 planes in the air looking for it and a Blackhawk helicopter eventually found it. We're not looking for wreckage. We're looking for a person with a military or paramilitary background who's had a lot of survival training and is not the least bit interested in being found. He walks and runs, never stops, some of the things he does, how he committed those burglaries, what he did with the articles he took, all of that gives us an uneasy feeling."

The circumstances prompted DeMeo to mention another manhunt that has been ongoing since 2001. "The terrain is a lot like Afghanistan. The finest military force in the world can't find Osama, so what can we do?" DeMeo said there are hundreds of mineshafts in the area, some that lead 26 miles underground, many that are big enough to hid a vehicle. "One of my guys put it this way: This isn't like finding a needle in a haystack. This is like finding a needle in the state of Nevada."

DeMeo said the suspect is between 5 feet, nine inches and five feet, 11 inches tall, with long hair and a beard, based on rare surveillance footage taken of the man when he purchased gas in Tonopah in February using a credit card stolen during a burglary.

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