MANSFIELD — Federal fugitive Shawn Christy was captured at 4:38 p.m. Friday near the area of Interstate 71 and U.S. Route 30 in Madison Township, according to Deputy Anne Murphy of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Christy, 26, of McAdoo, Pennsylvania, was arrested without incident after he was found hiding in a ravine by the U.S. Marshals and numerous other agencies. He was found with a firearm and a large knife on him.
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Law enforcement arrest Shawn Christy (in the middle) in 2018 after a five-day search in Richland County.
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Swat vehicle used in the search on Crider Road.
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Police searching for Shawn Christy on Crider Road
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Authorities were drawn to the Crider Road area of Madison Township on Friday afternoon.
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Shawn Christy manhunt -
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“He was actively hiding, and he was hiding from the time he heard our guys moving, and he continued to hide,” Murphy said. “He eventually surrendered. But he hid, and he actively hid from our team.”
Christy was deemed “healthy” after a review by medics and taken to the Richland County Jail where he will remain until Monday when he’ll be transported to federal court, possibly in Akron.
“At some point he’ll be moved back to Pennsylvania and have to deal with his charges in Pennsylvania,” Murphy said.
A canine picked up his scent and lead officers to Christy, who has led law enforcement on a multi-state chase since June 20. “Investigative resources” and “boots on the ground,” were cited by Murphy as the reasons the fugitive was caught.
“We’ve got some good police officers,” Murphy said.
She also thanked the community for providing tips.
“I can’t thank the community enough … the information that came in from the community, it was a great help,” she said.
U.S. Marshal Deputy Brian Fitzgibbons mentioned the media’s role in getting the message to the community.
“I firmly, firmly believe we captured this fugitive because we had a great partnership with the media,” he said.
Christy has multiple state arrest warrants in Pennsylvania for burglary, probation violation, and failure to appear for an aggravated assault case. A federal warrant was issued June 19 for Christy in relation to Facebook threats to the Northampton County district attorney, stating, “Keep it up Morganelli, I promise I’ll put a bullet in your head as soon as I put one in the head of President Donald J. Trump.” Christy also threatened to use “full lethal force on any law enforcement officer that tries to detain me.”
Authorities believe Christy stole a pickup in the early morning hours of Sept. 16 from Skitco Iron Works in Hazelton Township, Pennsylvania and crashed the stolen vehicle around 4:30 p.m. Sunday near the I-71 and Ohio 13 interchange before setting off on foot in the region.
Since then, the “slow and methodical” search has taken law enforcement through woods, fields, campsites and more.
On Friday, law enforcement arrived in the area of Interstate 71 and Route 30 around 1 p.m. Officers were stopping vehicles near Crider Road and checking trunks throughout the afternoon until Christy was found at 4:38 p.m.
“He’s no longer on the streets. He’s no longer a threat to the Mansfield community,” Murphy said. “Everybody can go back to living the lives they were Sunday morning.”
On Friday, Christy’s father, Craig Christy encouraged his son to turn himself into Dog (Duane) Chapman the Bounty Hunter via Facebook.
“Shawn Christy, need you to call 570-225-8675. Need you to turn yourself in to Dog Chapman Bounty Hunter. Lawyers and Bailbondsman will be provided,” the post said.
Later Friday, Craig Christy posted again. This time with screenshots of messages from Shawn.
“Shawn, this is Dad, in the event you encounter law enforcement, please listen to commands they give you,” Craig Christy wrote. “The FBI, Secret Service and the rest of law enforcement wants a safe ending … Pack it in son, you proved your point. Mom and I and thousands in our group Shawn Christy Political Prisoner love and support you.”
In the messages, he encouraged his son to call so that he could get him in touch with Chapman.
“I’ll be in touch,” Shawn Christy said, according to the screenshots.
The U.S. Marshals did not comment on the messages or share whether or not Christy had a phone in his possession when he was found.
“I don’t believe there’s anyone standing here on the post that’s had any contact with the Christy family,” Murphy said.
Federal authorities were offering a cash award of up to $20,000 for information leading to the direct arrest of Christy. The U.S. Marshals did not comment about whether or not anyone would receive that reward.
Area residents were on high alert all week as authorities urged them to remain vigilant and report anything they found suspicious, such as food, water, clothing or other necessities suddenly missing from homes, storage areas or garages.
Agencies involved included the U.S. Marshals Service, Richland County Sheriff’s Office, Mansfield Police Department, Ontario Police Department, Shelby Police Department, the FBI, the Secret Service, Ashland County Sheriff’s Office, Clear Fork Police Department, Mount Vernon Police Department, Richland County Emergency Management, Border Patrol and Allegheny Sheriff’s Department from Pennsylvania.
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