A 52-year-old man who allegedly evaded authorities in Illinois is behind bars.
The US Marshal’s Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force, Gulfport Division, arrested Lawrence W. Baker in Ocean Springs Tuesday morning. Baker was taken into custody at his residence without incident.
He was wanted out of LaSalle County, Illinois for aggravated Criminal Sexual Abuse which stemmed from an alleged 2006 incident involving a juvenile between the ages of 13 and 17.
US Marshals from Illinois and LaSalle County discovered that Baker had been living in Ocean Springs and is is believed that shortly after the alleged crime occurred, he fled to Mississippi to evade law enforcement.
Baker was transported to the Harrison County Jail in Gulfport pending his extradition back to Illinois.
In July of 2006, the United States Marshals Service established the Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force (GCRFTF). Full-time members of the GCRFTF consist of the: U.S. Marshals Service, The U.S. Border Patrol, Mississippi Department of Correction, Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Harrison County Sheriff’s Office, Forrest County Sheriff’s Office, Biloxi Police Department, Columbia Police Department and the Hattiesburg Police Department.
