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Crime

‘She feels safe now.’ Marshals arrest most-wanted Coast fugitive who faked own death

 

A Moss Point man who faked his own death to avoid going to prison for child sex crimes, and was named one of the U.S. Marshal’s top 15 most-wanted fugitives on Wednesday, was taken into custody that night, Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell confirmed to the Sun Herald.

Jacob Blair Scott, 43, was taken into custody in Antlers, Oklahoma, a friend and relative of the alleged child victim said Thursday.

“They (authorities) let me know early, early that they caught him,” the mother of the child victim said Thursday. “They said he was living in a camper. We are happy. We are very happy and my daughter just cried. She feels safe now.”

Marshals arrested Scott at a campground where he had been living after they got a tip about his whereabouts Wednesday night.

Scott, who had grown a beard and was using the name Luke, was surprised when marshals showed up to take him into custody, marshals said.

“After several call outs, Scott exited (the RV), but refused to acknowledge he was the fugitive,” the marshals office said in a press release Thursday. “He finally admitted to his identity after authorities verified his tattoos.”

Scott was featured on Investigation Discovery’s “In-Pursuit with John Walsh” on Wednesday night. Many media outlets also published information from the marshals’ press release on Wednesday announcing a $25,000 reward for his capture.

“This all-out media blitz led to a critical citizen tip that ultimately resulted in the fastest apprehension of a fugitive in the 37-year history of the 15 Most Wanted program,” said U.S. Marshals Assistant Director for Investigative Operations Jeff Tyler.

Scott is being held at the Pittsburg County jail in Oklahoma pending extradition back to Mississippi. He could face life in prison if convicted on all counts.

14 charges

Scott had not been seen since the end of July just days before he was set to plead guilty on the Coast to sex crimes charges against the child in a plea deal with the state.

He was wanted in Jackson County on 14 felony sex crimes charges, including one count that accuses him of filming the minor engaged in sex acts.

“There were so many people who were skeptical about him faking his own death,” said family friend Amanda Capers, who spoke to the child victim’s mother after the call about his capture came in.

Authorities said the investigation is ongoing to determine if anyone aided Scott in his attempt to fake his own death and avoid capture.

“We are going to follow every trail we can,” Ezell said Thursday. “If there are some other people involved and we can make a case, we are going to pursue it.”

Victim’s family knew Jacob Scott Blair was alive

“We cried on the phone together,” she said. “This is a big relief. We can see justice now. Hopefully, he won’t be able to post bond again.”

The child’s mother said she and her daughter suspected Scott faked his own death because he had told them he would never go to prison for his crimes.

Jacob Blair Scott U.S. Marshals

“We knew the whole time that he was alive and everybody tried to say he was dead and we kept telling them he was alive,” the mother said. “All of this pretty much ruined our whole life. It has caused so much stress and heartache.”

In addition to felony charges in Jackson County, marshals had a warrant for Scott’s arrest on an additional charge of being a fugitive from justice.

Alabama authorities said early on they felt Scott had faked his own death when they found his abandoned dinghy about a mile offshore in Orange Beach on July 30, 2018.

In it, they found what appeared to be a suicide note, a handgun tied to a rope and a very small amount of blood. His pickup truck was in a nearby parking lot in Orange Beach.

After further investigation, authorities learned Scott had withdrawn $45,000 from his retirement account shortly before his disappearance.

Scott is an Army veteran who received a Purple Heart as a result of injuries he sustained during his deployment in Iraq.

He had entered into a plea deal with Jackson County prosecutors when he convinced Judge Kathy King Jackson to push his plea date back to give him time to have surgery. His family said he never had the surgery.

The mother of the child victim spoke to the Sun Herald in exclusive interviews before and after his capture.

 
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