NorCal Child Sex Abuse Suspect Arrested In LA After 14 Years On The Run
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com/AP) — A former elementary school teacher wanted for 14 years in connection with sexual assault against children in Northern California remained in custody in Los Angeles on Thursday.
According to FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller, Frank Joseph Montenegro, 52, was taken into custody on Wednesday morning after leading officers on a foot chase and struggling with members of the agency's fugitive task force.
A federal criminal complaint that was filed on Aug. 15, 2001, by the U.S. District Court in San Francisco revealed Montenegro was charged in July 2001 by the Alameda County District Attorney's Office following an investigation led by detectives with the Fremont Police Department.
He was charged with multiple counts of sodomy of a child under 14, oral copulation and continued sexual abuse of a minor, according to the complaint.
The FBI joined the search after police discovered the Montenegro had fled across the southern U.S. border to Mexico.
The Los Angeles Police Department recently offered a tip to the FBI indicating a federal fugitive had been residing locally for several years at a community home in the Brooklyn Heights area.
It wasn't immediately known if Montenegro has a lawyer.
Officials aren't naming the school where he worked.
Montenegro is being held in state custody in L.A. and will be transferred to the custody of Alameda County officials.
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