Richard Lee McNair
Encyclopedia
Richard Lee McNair is a convicted murderer known for his ability to escape and elude capture. Macnair murdered a man in 1987 during a botched robbery, and is currently serving two terms of life imprisonment for that crime. He has escaped from one jail and two prisons, including a federal prison in April 2006, which resulted in his being featured a dozen times on the TV show America's Most Wanted
, and made him one of the top fifteen fugitives wanted by US Marshals. McNair travelled to Canada
twice in order to evade capture, travelling across the country for over a year before being apprehended in a random police check. Much of what the public knows about McNair's escape and his time as a fugitive is through McNair's prison correspondence with a Canadian journalist, Byron Christopher.
, McNair was surprised by two men and murdered one of them. He was later sentenced to two life sentences for murder and attempted murder, and a thirty-year prison sentence for burglary. McNair's murder of Jerry Thies occurred at a grain elevator operated by the Farmers Union Elevator Co. while McNair was a sergeant posted at the nearby Minot Air Force Base
. A second man was shot four times, but survived. When the police called McNair in for questioning, McNair surrendered a concealed handgun.
After McNair's arrest, he escaped three times from three different institutions. His means of escape were creative. Once, McNair escaped by using lip balm to slip out of a pair of handcuffs. Another time, he escaped through an air duct. In his final escape, McNair had himself mailed out of prison by hiding inside a pallet-load of mailbags that had been repaired in a prison workshop.
McNair's first escape attempt occurred at the Minot municipal police station in 1988, shortly after he had been arrested. McNair's first period as a fugitive lasted only a few hours, after which McNair was quickly recaptured. After his arrest McNair was handcuffed to a chair and left in a room with three detectives. McNair used lip balm, which he had in his pocket, as a lubricant to squeeze his hands free from the handcuffs. McNair then led police on a footchase through the town, eventually being chased up a three-flight stairway in an effort to evade capture. After becoming surrounded by police on the roof of a three-story building downtown, McNair attempted to jump to a tree branch to escape arrest, but the branch broke. McNair landed on the ground and hurt his back, after which he was easily apprehended. After McNair was released from the hospital, McNair was moved to the Ward County
Jail in Minot. In February 1988, sheriff's deputies discovered an attempt by McNair to escape when, after moving McNair to another cell, they found that McNair had chiseled two cinderblocks from the cell in which he was being held.
In October 1992 McNair escaped with two other prisoners from the state penitentiary
in Bismarck, North Dakota
by crawling through a ventilation duct. One of the prisoners who escaped with McNair was apprehended within hours, and the other within days. After his escape, McNair let his hair grow out and dyed it blonde, and travelled around the United States in stolen cars. McNair remained free for ten months, until he was eventually arrested in Grass Island, Nebraska
, in 1993. After his second recapture, the North Dakota Department of Corrections deemed McNair a problematic inmate, and successfully requested that he be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons
. McNair remained in custody until his final esape, over a decade later.
near Pollock, Louisiana
. McNair's duties in prison included work in a manufacturing area, where he would repair old, torn mailbags. He held this position for a several months, throughout which McNair plotted his escape. McNair escaped by hiding himself in a specially-constructed "escape pod" (which included a breathing tube), which was buried under a pile of mailbags. The pallet was shrink-wrapped and forklifted to a nearby warehouse outside of the prison fence. After prison staff delivered McNair's pallet and went for lunch, McNair cut himself out of his "escape pod" and walked though the unsecured area to freedom. Federal investigators believed that McNair must have received help from other inmates to escape, but McNair has always maintained that he acted alone.
McNair's pallet was shipped out of the prison around 09:45, and he was able to exit the pallet around 11:00. McNair was aware that it would not be until 16:00 that the prison would find him missing. McNair's plan was to move to the nearby town of Alexandria, Louisiana
, where he would then steal supplies and transportation.
Hours after his escape from Pollock, McNair was stopped while jogging on a railroad track near Ball, Louisiana
by police officer Carl Bordelon. The location of where he was stopped is 31.409,-92.417. Despite having no identification and giving two different names, McNair successfully convinced Bordelon that he was jogging and in town to help on a post-Katrina roofing project. This incident was captured on a video camera mounted in Bordelon's patrol car. McNair proceeded to give Officer Bordelon the alias of Robert Jones. When asked again five minutes later, he gave a different alias, Jimmy Jones. Bordelon did not pick up on this. McNair laughed and joked with the officer, and even as the officer got a matching description of the inmate, McNair appeared collected and calm. Within 10 minutes McNair was back to 'jogging'.
Several factors made it easier for McNair to escape arrest: the photo provided to police was very low-quality and six months old; and, the prison had told police that they were not completely sure that McNair had escaped. The extreme heat and humidity (113F/45C with 80% humidity), with the officer's black uniform and body armour, may have effected the officer's concentration. Bordelon himself claimed that he let McNair escape because the physical description of McNair given to police was completely different than how McNair actually appeared. Over the ten minutes that Bordelon questioned McNair, McNair remained cool and provided completely plausible explanations, eventually convincing Bordelon that his alibi was true.
McNair later wrote that he did not see the cruiser because it was blocked from view by trees, and that he planned to run if he was not able to convince Bordelon of his innocence. McNair later refuted the suggestion that he would have assaulted the police officer if confronted, claiming that he had renounced violence after his initial arrest. McNair described his escape as a "get out of jail free card", and described his feelings after the confrontation with Bordelon as "relief, disbelief, bewilderment." McNair agreed that he did not resemble his prison picture.
Later that April, about two weeks after his escape, McNair successfully crossed into British Columbia
from Blaine, Washington
. On April 28, 2006, RCMP in Penticton, British Columbia confronted McNair while investigating a stolen car that he was driving, which was parked at a local beach. The officers asked McNair to step out of the car to be questioned, which he did, but he ran across a nearby field and outran the officers soon after being confronted. The police impounded the car, but did not realize the identity of McNair until two days later, when one of the officers recognized him from an episode of America's Most Wanted. Subsequent investigation found a digital camera full of self-portraits, which police determined were probably for the purpose of producing a fake ID. When authorities examined the car, they found McNair's fingerprints, confirming that he was in Canada.
After escaping arrest in Penticton, McNair rode a bike to Kelowna
. Because it took several days for the police to confirm his identity, it was relatively easy for McNair to escape the area. In May 2006 McNair travelled back to the United States, when he drove a Subaru Outback
from Vernon, British Columbia
to Blaine, Washington
. McNair then traveled across the United States, and eventually crossed back into Canada from Minnesota
. After arriving back in Canada, McNair traveled through southern Ontario
, then traveled west, to Vancouver
.
Early on, McNair developed a plan to buy land in central BC, around Williston Lake
, after seeing ads for the property. He changed his mind after visiting the area and finding that a drought and pine beetle infestation had devistated the area. The fact that there was only one road in and out of the property also made McNair feel uncomfortable.
In 2007 McNair travelled to eastern Canada. He drove through the Laurentian Highlands in Quebec
, where he enjoyed mountain biking. He spent a lot of time around Lac Saint-Jean
. McNair nearly attempted to cross back into the United States again at Derby Line, Vermont
, but the high security on the American side convinced him that attempting to cross back would be too risky. He eventually travelled through Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Saint John, New Brunswick
. McNair spent about two months in Fredericton, New Brunswick
, before he was again confronted by police.
(RCMP), confirming that the fugitive had been seen north of the border.
McNair watched America's Most Wanted intently, describing the show as a "thorn". McNair confirmed after his capture that, whenever a new episode of America's Most Wanted aired, he would buy food and fuel his vehicle, "then if featured would keep it low for a couple of days".
Throughout his time as a fugitive, McNair tracked his own story on the internet. After his recapture, McNair commented that the ongoing coverage of him was "for the most part true". Louisiana Marshal Glenn Belgard attempted to capture McNair online with the help of a criminal profiler. McNair suspected that the Louisiana police had attempted to contact McNair by posing as a woman online, who said that "she would like to hide [McNair] in her basement." McNair was surprised by the media coverage that focused on him, especially the eleven-page article that appeared in The New Yorker
, written by Mark Singer
, on October 9, 2006.
McNair owned several laptops while living as a fugitive. After having his laptop seized in Penticton, he began to store most of his information on USB sticks. With the help of a scanner, digital camera, photoshop, and a pet ID website, McNair was able to produce a passable fake Alaska driver's licence. He learned how to rig his video camera to his laptop so that he could cut his own hair. One of McNair's laptops was dedicated solely to monitoring a Louisiana-based website, /www.wesawthat.blogspot.com/, which closely followed all Media coverage of McNair.
In order to support himself, McNair stole vehicles and cash from car dealerships. Because he had once worked as a car salesman himself, McNair knew where to find cash and keys at such dealerships, and how to avoid security. McNair only stole new vehicles: they had window stickers indicating whether a vehicle was equipped with a GPS-style tracking system (if it did, he wouldn't touch it). McNair avoided driving conspicuous-looking vehicles, preferring white vehicles that "everybody has". He once considered stealing a 3/4 ton truck/camper, “but one of the supposed sightings of [McNair] was in North Dakota
(of all places) in a truck with camper", so he eventually settled on a van instead.
In one incident, while McNair was staying in a motel near Chilliwack, British Columbia
, he left to buy something and returned to find the motel surrounded by a police SWAT team. McNair began to flee in his car, but later found on a local AM radio station that the police were responding to a hostage situation at the motel. McNair then returned to the scene and filmed the standoff with a Sony HD video camera which he had recently purchased. The episode lasted for another twenty minutes.
, off-duty RCMP const. Dan Melanson spotted an expensive-looking white cube van with "crappy looking" tinted rear windows and an Ontario
licence plate. Suspecting that the van was stolen, and/or being used to smuggle alcohol or cigarettes, Melanson noted the plate number and noted that the van was headed to Campbellton
, a nearby town. Melanson did not attempt to apprehend McNair, but his report alerted other RCMP in Campbellton of the presence of McNair's vehicle. (McNair had in fact tinted the windows himself in a London, Ontario
park).
The next day Const. Stephane Gagnon, a six-week rookie, spotted McNair's van by chance in downtown Campbellton, and pursued it. Following a low-speed car chase and a subsequent foot chase, McNair was successfully arrested by Gagnon with the help of his field coach, Const. Nelson Lavesque. In October 2008 the US-based International Association of Chiefs of Police
awarded Melanson the Looking Beyond the Licence Plate Grand Prize for his role in apprehending McNair. McNair himself described his capture as simply the product of bad luck: as he put it, it was "just one of those days." McNair was transferred to the Atlantic Institution
, a Canadian federal maximum security penitentiary, while awaiting extradition to the United States.
Mounties later told the media that McNair was cooperative after his capture, and even joked with them. When one officer asked McNair what the reward was for his capture, McNair replied "$25,000". "That's not much" said the cop. McNair replied that was because "all of the government money is tied up in Osama Bin Laden's reward." McNair later described the Campbellton RCMP as "good men doing their job".
ID # 13829-045) is currently incarcerated in the Administrative Maximum (ADX)
facility near Florence
, Colorado
. ADX Florence has a reputation as "the Alcatraz of the Rockies
". It houses some of the country's best-known public enemies.
McNair now spends most of every day in a 12'x7' concrete cell. He lives in a pod with five other prisoners, who he cannot see. His only human contact is with the prison guards, who he can communicate with only through a barrier of steel and bulletproof glass. McNair has no access to the internet or a telephone, and his only means of communication with the outside world is via mail. Prison staff screen and freely censor McNair's incoming and outgoing mail.
In his media correspondence, McNair described his location as the "most secure section of the most secure prison in the world", but expressed reservations about discussing specific details of his incarceration. "Thank God for prisons", McNair wrote. "There are some very sick people in here... Animals you would never want living near your family or the public in general. I don't know how corrections staff deal with it. They get spit on, shit on, abused and I have seen them risk their own lives and save a prisoner many times."
Chamber of Commerce would write a cheque to McNair for all the publicity he had brought to the town, and wrote to McNair about the recent World Series
and federal election
. Christopher included three American dollars in order to cover the cost of paper and postage. The prison returned his money.
When McNair wrote back to Christopher, it was his first response to the media. The letter revealed many personal details about McNair's most recent escape which had previously been unknown. Revealing that he had spent time hiding in Fredricton, New Brunswick, McNair described Fredricton's residents as "very friendly and well educated." He revealed that his favorite magazine was the Christian Science Monitor. Campbellton's local newspaper, the Tribune, covered the correspondence in detail.
In subsequent letters to Christopher, McNair revealed details about his escape and travels through Canada, providing most of what the public knows about McNair's time as a fugitive. McNair had an interest in discussing his story with a British TV reporter, but suspects that the correspondence may have been terminated by prison censors.
, in 2009.
America's Most Wanted
America's Most Wanted is an American television program produced by 20th Television, and was the longest-running program of any kind in the history of the Fox Television Network until it was announced on May 16, 2011 that the series was canceled after twenty-three years, with the final episode...
, and made him one of the top fifteen fugitives wanted by US Marshals. McNair travelled to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
twice in order to evade capture, travelling across the country for over a year before being apprehended in a random police check. Much of what the public knows about McNair's escape and his time as a fugitive is through McNair's prison correspondence with a Canadian journalist, Byron Christopher.
Early life
On November 1987, while attempting a burglary in Minot, North DakotaMinot, North Dakota
Minot is a city located in north central North Dakota in the United States. It is most widely known for the Air Force base located approximately 15 miles north of the city. With a population of 40,888 at the 2010 census, Minot is the fourth largest city in the state...
, McNair was surprised by two men and murdered one of them. He was later sentenced to two life sentences for murder and attempted murder, and a thirty-year prison sentence for burglary. McNair's murder of Jerry Thies occurred at a grain elevator operated by the Farmers Union Elevator Co. while McNair was a sergeant posted at the nearby Minot Air Force Base
Minot Air Force Base
Minot Air Force Base is a U.S. Air Force installation in Ward County, North Dakota, north of the city of Minot. In the 2010 census, the base was counted as a CDP with a total population of 5,521....
. A second man was shot four times, but survived. When the police called McNair in for questioning, McNair surrendered a concealed handgun.
After McNair's arrest, he escaped three times from three different institutions. His means of escape were creative. Once, McNair escaped by using lip balm to slip out of a pair of handcuffs. Another time, he escaped through an air duct. In his final escape, McNair had himself mailed out of prison by hiding inside a pallet-load of mailbags that had been repaired in a prison workshop.
McNair's first escape attempt occurred at the Minot municipal police station in 1988, shortly after he had been arrested. McNair's first period as a fugitive lasted only a few hours, after which McNair was quickly recaptured. After his arrest McNair was handcuffed to a chair and left in a room with three detectives. McNair used lip balm, which he had in his pocket, as a lubricant to squeeze his hands free from the handcuffs. McNair then led police on a footchase through the town, eventually being chased up a three-flight stairway in an effort to evade capture. After becoming surrounded by police on the roof of a three-story building downtown, McNair attempted to jump to a tree branch to escape arrest, but the branch broke. McNair landed on the ground and hurt his back, after which he was easily apprehended. After McNair was released from the hospital, McNair was moved to the Ward County
Ward County, North Dakota
-National protected areas:*Des Lacs National Wildlife Refuge *Hiddenwood National Wildlife Refuge *Upper Souris National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:...
Jail in Minot. In February 1988, sheriff's deputies discovered an attempt by McNair to escape when, after moving McNair to another cell, they found that McNair had chiseled two cinderblocks from the cell in which he was being held.
In October 1992 McNair escaped with two other prisoners from the state penitentiary
North Dakota State Penitentiary
The North Dakota State Penitentiary is a part of the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and is located in Bismarck, North Dakota.-External links:*...
in Bismarck, North Dakota
Bismarck, North Dakota
Bismarck is the capital of the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Burleigh County. It is the second most populous city in North Dakota after Fargo. The city's population was 61,272 at the 2010 census, while its metropolitan population was 108,779...
by crawling through a ventilation duct. One of the prisoners who escaped with McNair was apprehended within hours, and the other within days. After his escape, McNair let his hair grow out and dyed it blonde, and travelled around the United States in stolen cars. McNair remained free for ten months, until he was eventually arrested in Grass Island, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, in 1993. After his second recapture, the North Dakota Department of Corrections deemed McNair a problematic inmate, and successfully requested that he be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons
Federal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons is a federal law enforcement agency subdivision of the United States Department of Justice and is responsible for the administration of the federal prison system. The system also handles prisoners who committed acts considered felonies under the District of Columbia's...
. McNair remained in custody until his final esape, over a decade later.
First day
On April 5, 2006, McNair escaped custody from a prisonUnited States Penitentiary, Pollock
The United States Penitentiary, Pollock, is a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility for male offenders in unincorporated southeastern Grant Parish in central Louisiana. The facility, surrounded by the Kisatchie National Forest and in proximity to Pollock, is north of Alexandria...
near Pollock, Louisiana
Pollock, Louisiana
Pollock is a town in Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the Alexandria, Louisiana Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 376 at the 2000 census. Pollock and southern Grant Parish have been booming in recent years with residential and business growth...
. McNair's duties in prison included work in a manufacturing area, where he would repair old, torn mailbags. He held this position for a several months, throughout which McNair plotted his escape. McNair escaped by hiding himself in a specially-constructed "escape pod" (which included a breathing tube), which was buried under a pile of mailbags. The pallet was shrink-wrapped and forklifted to a nearby warehouse outside of the prison fence. After prison staff delivered McNair's pallet and went for lunch, McNair cut himself out of his "escape pod" and walked though the unsecured area to freedom. Federal investigators believed that McNair must have received help from other inmates to escape, but McNair has always maintained that he acted alone.
McNair's pallet was shipped out of the prison around 09:45, and he was able to exit the pallet around 11:00. McNair was aware that it would not be until 16:00 that the prison would find him missing. McNair's plan was to move to the nearby town of Alexandria, Louisiana
Alexandria, Louisiana
Alexandria is a city in and the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the principal city of the Alexandria metropolitan area which encompasses all of Rapides and Grant parishes....
, where he would then steal supplies and transportation.
Hours after his escape from Pollock, McNair was stopped while jogging on a railroad track near Ball, Louisiana
Ball, Louisiana
Ball is a town in Rapides Parish just north of Pineville, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the Alexandria, Louisiana Metropolitan Statistical Area...
by police officer Carl Bordelon. The location of where he was stopped is 31.409,-92.417. Despite having no identification and giving two different names, McNair successfully convinced Bordelon that he was jogging and in town to help on a post-Katrina roofing project. This incident was captured on a video camera mounted in Bordelon's patrol car. McNair proceeded to give Officer Bordelon the alias of Robert Jones. When asked again five minutes later, he gave a different alias, Jimmy Jones. Bordelon did not pick up on this. McNair laughed and joked with the officer, and even as the officer got a matching description of the inmate, McNair appeared collected and calm. Within 10 minutes McNair was back to 'jogging'.
Several factors made it easier for McNair to escape arrest: the photo provided to police was very low-quality and six months old; and, the prison had told police that they were not completely sure that McNair had escaped. The extreme heat and humidity (113F/45C with 80% humidity), with the officer's black uniform and body armour, may have effected the officer's concentration. Bordelon himself claimed that he let McNair escape because the physical description of McNair given to police was completely different than how McNair actually appeared. Over the ten minutes that Bordelon questioned McNair, McNair remained cool and provided completely plausible explanations, eventually convincing Bordelon that his alibi was true.
McNair later wrote that he did not see the cruiser because it was blocked from view by trees, and that he planned to run if he was not able to convince Bordelon of his innocence. McNair later refuted the suggestion that he would have assaulted the police officer if confronted, claiming that he had renounced violence after his initial arrest. McNair described his escape as a "get out of jail free card", and described his feelings after the confrontation with Bordelon as "relief, disbelief, bewilderment." McNair agreed that he did not resemble his prison picture.
Fugitive in Canada
On April 13, 2006 US Marshals added McNair to their 15 Most Wanted list. They noted that McNair was the first prisoner to escape from a federal prison since 1991.Later that April, about two weeks after his escape, McNair successfully crossed into British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
from Blaine, Washington
Blaine, Washington
Blaine is a city in Whatcom County, Washington, United States. The city's northern boundary is the Canadian border. Blaine is the shared home of the Peace Arch international monument...
. On April 28, 2006, RCMP in Penticton, British Columbia confronted McNair while investigating a stolen car that he was driving, which was parked at a local beach. The officers asked McNair to step out of the car to be questioned, which he did, but he ran across a nearby field and outran the officers soon after being confronted. The police impounded the car, but did not realize the identity of McNair until two days later, when one of the officers recognized him from an episode of America's Most Wanted. Subsequent investigation found a digital camera full of self-portraits, which police determined were probably for the purpose of producing a fake ID. When authorities examined the car, they found McNair's fingerprints, confirming that he was in Canada.
After escaping arrest in Penticton, McNair rode a bike to Kelowna
Kelowna
Kelowna is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley, in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. Its name derives from a Okanagan language term for "grizzly bear"...
. Because it took several days for the police to confirm his identity, it was relatively easy for McNair to escape the area. In May 2006 McNair travelled back to the United States, when he drove a Subaru Outback
Subaru Outback
The Subaru Outback is a station wagon manufactured by Fuji Heavy Industries since 1995. Its original concept originated with Subaru of America, which was suffering from slumping sales in the mid-1990s partly due to a lack of an entry in the then-burgeoning sport utility vehicle market...
from Vernon, British Columbia
Vernon, British Columbia
Vernon is a city in the south-central region of British Columbia, Canada. Named after Forbes George Vernon, a former MLA of British Columbia who helped found the famed Coldstream Ranch, the City of Vernon was incorporated on December 30, 1892. The City of Vernon has a population of 35,944 , while...
to Blaine, Washington
Blaine, Washington
Blaine is a city in Whatcom County, Washington, United States. The city's northern boundary is the Canadian border. Blaine is the shared home of the Peace Arch international monument...
. McNair then traveled across the United States, and eventually crossed back into Canada from Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. After arriving back in Canada, McNair traveled through southern Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, then traveled west, to Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
.
Early on, McNair developed a plan to buy land in central BC, around Williston Lake
Williston Lake
Williston Lake is a reservoir created by the W. A. C. Bennett Dam and is located in the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada.-Geography:...
, after seeing ads for the property. He changed his mind after visiting the area and finding that a drought and pine beetle infestation had devistated the area. The fact that there was only one road in and out of the property also made McNair feel uncomfortable.
In 2007 McNair travelled to eastern Canada. He drove through the Laurentian Highlands in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, where he enjoyed mountain biking. He spent a lot of time around Lac Saint-Jean
Lac Saint-Jean
Lac Saint-Jean is a large, relatively shallow lake in south-central Quebec, Canada, in the Laurentian Highlands. It is situated 206 kilometres north of the Saint Lawrence River, into which it drains via the Saguenay River. It covers an area of 1003 km² Lac Saint-Jean is a large, relatively...
. McNair nearly attempted to cross back into the United States again at Derby Line, Vermont
Derby Line, Vermont
Derby Line is an incorporated village in the town of Derby in Orleans County, Vermont, United States, slightly north of the 45th parallel, the normal U.S.-Canadian boundary...
, but the high security on the American side convinced him that attempting to cross back would be too risky. He eventually travelled through Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Saint John, New Brunswick
Saint John, New Brunswick
City of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...
. McNair spent about two months in Fredericton, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
, before he was again confronted by police.
Attempts to avoid recapture
On April 8, 2006, three days after McNair's escape, America's Most Wanted ran its first profile of McNair. The program would go on to detail McNair a total of twelve times on television, and nine times on radio. The last time McNair was featured was November 24, 2007, a month after his recapture. Over the period of McNair's time in Canada, Canadian viewers made over 50 reports to the Royal Canadian Mounted PoliceRoyal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
(RCMP), confirming that the fugitive had been seen north of the border.
McNair watched America's Most Wanted intently, describing the show as a "thorn". McNair confirmed after his capture that, whenever a new episode of America's Most Wanted aired, he would buy food and fuel his vehicle, "then if featured would keep it low for a couple of days".
Throughout his time as a fugitive, McNair tracked his own story on the internet. After his recapture, McNair commented that the ongoing coverage of him was "for the most part true". Louisiana Marshal Glenn Belgard attempted to capture McNair online with the help of a criminal profiler. McNair suspected that the Louisiana police had attempted to contact McNair by posing as a woman online, who said that "she would like to hide [McNair] in her basement." McNair was surprised by the media coverage that focused on him, especially the eleven-page article that appeared in The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
, written by Mark Singer
Mark Singer
Dr. Mark Singer MD, is an American doctor who is best known for inventing, with speech pathologist Eric Blom, while working at Methodist Hospital, Indianapolis, a type of voice prosthesis that allows victims of laryngeal cancer to talk....
, on October 9, 2006.
McNair owned several laptops while living as a fugitive. After having his laptop seized in Penticton, he began to store most of his information on USB sticks. With the help of a scanner, digital camera, photoshop, and a pet ID website, McNair was able to produce a passable fake Alaska driver's licence. He learned how to rig his video camera to his laptop so that he could cut his own hair. One of McNair's laptops was dedicated solely to monitoring a Louisiana-based website, /www.wesawthat.blogspot.com/, which closely followed all Media coverage of McNair.
In order to support himself, McNair stole vehicles and cash from car dealerships. Because he had once worked as a car salesman himself, McNair knew where to find cash and keys at such dealerships, and how to avoid security. McNair only stole new vehicles: they had window stickers indicating whether a vehicle was equipped with a GPS-style tracking system (if it did, he wouldn't touch it). McNair avoided driving conspicuous-looking vehicles, preferring white vehicles that "everybody has". He once considered stealing a 3/4 ton truck/camper, “but one of the supposed sightings of [McNair] was in North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
(of all places) in a truck with camper", so he eventually settled on a van instead.
In one incident, while McNair was staying in a motel near Chilliwack, British Columbia
Chilliwack, British Columbia
Chilliwack is a Canadian city in the Province of British Columbia. It is a predominantly agricultural community with an estimated population of 80,000 people. Chilliwack is the second largest city in the Fraser Valley Regional District after Abbotsford. The city is surrounded by mountains and...
, he left to buy something and returned to find the motel surrounded by a police SWAT team. McNair began to flee in his car, but later found on a local AM radio station that the police were responding to a hostage situation at the motel. McNair then returned to the scene and filmed the standoff with a Sony HD video camera which he had recently purchased. The episode lasted for another twenty minutes.
Recapture
On October 24, 2007 near Nash Creek, New BrunswickNash Creek, New Brunswick
Nash Creek is a Canadian rural community in Restigouche County, New Brunswick.Located in the eastern part of the county along the south shore of Chaleur Bay, Nash Creek derives its name from a creek of the same name....
, off-duty RCMP const. Dan Melanson spotted an expensive-looking white cube van with "crappy looking" tinted rear windows and an Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
licence plate. Suspecting that the van was stolen, and/or being used to smuggle alcohol or cigarettes, Melanson noted the plate number and noted that the van was headed to Campbellton
Campbellton, New Brunswick
Campbellton is a Canadian city in Restigouche County, New Brunswick.Situated on the south bank of the Restigouche River opposite Pointe-à-la-Croix, Quebec, Campbellton was officially incorporated in 1889 and achieved city status in 1958.Forestry and tourism are major industries in the regional...
, a nearby town. Melanson did not attempt to apprehend McNair, but his report alerted other RCMP in Campbellton of the presence of McNair's vehicle. (McNair had in fact tinted the windows himself in a London, Ontario
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
park).
The next day Const. Stephane Gagnon, a six-week rookie, spotted McNair's van by chance in downtown Campbellton, and pursued it. Following a low-speed car chase and a subsequent foot chase, McNair was successfully arrested by Gagnon with the help of his field coach, Const. Nelson Lavesque. In October 2008 the US-based International Association of Chiefs of Police
International Association of Chiefs of Police
The International Association of Chiefs of Police was founded in Chicago in 1893 as the National Chiefs of Police Union. The primary goal of this organization was to apprehend and return criminals who had fled the agency jurisdictions in which they were wanted...
awarded Melanson the Looking Beyond the Licence Plate Grand Prize for his role in apprehending McNair. McNair himself described his capture as simply the product of bad luck: as he put it, it was "just one of those days." McNair was transferred to the Atlantic Institution
Atlantic Institution
The Atlantic Institution is a Canadian federal corrections facility located in the village of Renous, New Brunswick.It was opened in 1987 on the north bank of the Southwest Miramichi River; the property was formerly used as an ammunition depot by the Canadian Forces.Renous was selected as the site...
, a Canadian federal maximum security penitentiary, while awaiting extradition to the United States.
Mounties later told the media that McNair was cooperative after his capture, and even joked with them. When one officer asked McNair what the reward was for his capture, McNair replied "$25,000". "That's not much" said the cop. McNair replied that was because "all of the government money is tied up in Osama Bin Laden's reward." McNair later described the Campbellton RCMP as "good men doing their job".
Prison
McNair (Federal Bureau of PrisonsFederal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons is a federal law enforcement agency subdivision of the United States Department of Justice and is responsible for the administration of the federal prison system. The system also handles prisoners who committed acts considered felonies under the District of Columbia's...
ID # 13829-045) is currently incarcerated in the Administrative Maximum (ADX)
ADX Florence
The United States Penitentiary Administrative Maximum Facility is a supermax prison for men that is located in unincorporated Fremont County, Colorado, United States, south of Florence. It is unofficially known as ADX Florence, Florence ADMAX, Supermax, or The Alcatraz of the Rockies...
facility near Florence
Florence, Colorado
The City of Florence is a Statutory City located in Fremont County, Colorado, United States. The population was 3,653 at the 2000 census.ADX Florence, the only federal Supermax prison in the United States, is located south of Florence in an unincorporated area in Fremont County...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
. ADX Florence has a reputation as "the Alcatraz of the Rockies
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
". It houses some of the country's best-known public enemies.
McNair now spends most of every day in a 12'x7' concrete cell. He lives in a pod with five other prisoners, who he cannot see. His only human contact is with the prison guards, who he can communicate with only through a barrier of steel and bulletproof glass. McNair has no access to the internet or a telephone, and his only means of communication with the outside world is via mail. Prison staff screen and freely censor McNair's incoming and outgoing mail.
In his media correspondence, McNair described his location as the "most secure section of the most secure prison in the world", but expressed reservations about discussing specific details of his incarceration. "Thank God for prisons", McNair wrote. "There are some very sick people in here... Animals you would never want living near your family or the public in general. I don't know how corrections staff deal with it. They get spit on, shit on, abused and I have seen them risk their own lives and save a prisoner many times."
Media correspondence
In 2008, Byron Christopher, a crime reporter from the same New Brunswick town where McNair was captured, began a correspondence with McNair via mail. In his first letter, Christopher included a picture that he had taken of the town, taken near the place that McNair was arrested. He told McNair that he hoped the CampbelltonCampbellton, New Brunswick
Campbellton is a Canadian city in Restigouche County, New Brunswick.Situated on the south bank of the Restigouche River opposite Pointe-à-la-Croix, Quebec, Campbellton was officially incorporated in 1889 and achieved city status in 1958.Forestry and tourism are major industries in the regional...
Chamber of Commerce would write a cheque to McNair for all the publicity he had brought to the town, and wrote to McNair about the recent World Series
2008 World Series
The 2008 World Series was the 104th World Series between the American and National Leagues for the championship of Major League Baseball. The Philadelphia Phillies as champions of the National League and the Tampa Bay Rays, as American League champions, competed to win four games out of a possible...
and federal election
United States elections, 2008
The 2008 United States general elections were held on November 4. The result was a significant victory for the Democratic Party on the national level, as they increased majorities in both houses of Congress and won the Presidency. Democrat Barack Obama defeated Republican John McCain in the...
. Christopher included three American dollars in order to cover the cost of paper and postage. The prison returned his money.
When McNair wrote back to Christopher, it was his first response to the media. The letter revealed many personal details about McNair's most recent escape which had previously been unknown. Revealing that he had spent time hiding in Fredricton, New Brunswick, McNair described Fredricton's residents as "very friendly and well educated." He revealed that his favorite magazine was the Christian Science Monitor. Campbellton's local newspaper, the Tribune, covered the correspondence in detail.
In subsequent letters to Christopher, McNair revealed details about his escape and travels through Canada, providing most of what the public knows about McNair's time as a fugitive. McNair had an interest in discussing his story with a British TV reporter, but suspects that the correspondence may have been terminated by prison censors.
Book on McNair
Award-winning Canadian reporter Byron Christopher has announced that he will release a biography on McNair, through a New York publishing company, Vantage Point Inc., in the fall of 2012. The book will be a follow-up to "The Running Man" series, published by The Tribune newspaper of Campbellton, New BrunswickCampbellton, New Brunswick
Campbellton is a Canadian city in Restigouche County, New Brunswick.Situated on the south bank of the Restigouche River opposite Pointe-à-la-Croix, Quebec, Campbellton was officially incorporated in 1889 and achieved city status in 1958.Forestry and tourism are major industries in the regional...
, in 2009.
See also
- Prison escapePrison escapeA prison escape or prison break is the act of an inmate leaving prison through unofficial or illegal ways. Normally, when this occurs, an effort is made on the part of authorities to recapture them and return them to their original detainers...
- Fugitive from justiceFugitiveA fugitive is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from private slavery, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals...
Resources
- Video of McNair smooth-talking a police officer
- Criminal history
- McNair's U.S. Marshals Service wanted poster
- McNair's profile on America's Most Wanted
- Calgary Herald, October 10, 2007. "U.S. killer may be on loose in Calgary" by Sherri Zickefoose, Calgary Herald.
- The New Yorker, October 9, 2006. "Escaped" (essay by Mark SingerMark SingerDr. Mark Singer MD, is an American doctor who is best known for inventing, with speech pathologist Eric Blom, while working at Methodist Hospital, Indianapolis, a type of voice prosthesis that allows victims of laryngeal cancer to talk....
). - The Calgary HeraldCalgary HeraldThe Calgary Herald is a daily newspaper published in the Canadian city of Calgary, Alberta.- History :The paper was first published on August 31, 1883 by Andrew Armour and Thomas Braden as The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate and General Advertiser. It started as a weekly paper with only...
(Alberta) August 14, 2006. "RCMP sift through fresh tips after TV show on escaped killer: No confirmed sightings reported since end of April". - The Vancouver Sun (British ColumbiaBritish ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
), August 5, 2006. "U.S. fugitive in Canada is focus of TV show". - Daily Town Talk (Alexandria, LouisianaAlexandria, LouisianaAlexandria is a city in and the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the principal city of the Alexandria metropolitan area which encompasses all of Rapides and Grant parishes....
), July 11, 2006. "On the lam: McNair's continental adventure".