American suspect Lance Michael Beck, arrested in Phuket last month over serious child sex offence allegations, has been returned to Alabama and is now being held without bail, US officials announced yesterday, September 17.
Thai police arrested Beck in Phuket on August 29 after US authorities sought assistance locating him. He was detained ahead of his return to the United States, where the case has now moved into the American judicial process.
US authorities said Beck faces five charges in St. Clair County involving a child under 12: first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy, sexual torture, facilitating the travel of a child for a sexual purpose and human trafficking.
Officials said that after learning Beck had fled to Thailand, US officials obtained a federal warrant for Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution and coordinated with Thai law enforcement to locate him.
The operation involved investigators from the Investigation Division Metropolitan Bureau (IDMB), Immigration Division 3 and Sakhu Police Station in Phuket.
According to the FBI’s Birmingham Field Office, Thai police located and arrested Beck in Phuket within eight hours of receiving the federal warrant.
Less than three weeks after the federal warrant was received, Beck had been returned to Birmingham, Alabama, to face legal proceedings.
Dave Fitzgibbons, special agent in charge of the FBI Birmingham Field Office, highlighted the speed of the operation and credited cooperation between US federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and their Thai counterparts.
US officials said the operation reflected wider cooperation between the FBI and Thai law enforcement in locating people accused of fleeing prosecution across international borders.
Beck is currently being held at St. Clair County Jail in Alabama without bail while the investigation and court proceedings continue.
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