On January 30th, the US Marshals office announced the arrest of a fugitive that had been on the run for 18 months.
“Within hours of our announcement and our plea to the public for information, a tipster called the Pushamataha Sheriff's Office in Oklahoma and said a man fitting the description of Jacob Scott was staying in a mobile home park,” said Inspector Jeremy Stilwell, the lead investigator on the case for the U.S. Marshals said in a press release posted by the U.S. Marshals. “After sheriff’s deputies looked up Scott’s information, they saw he was wanted by the Marshals and immediately relayed the tip to us. We then worked with the local authorities to develop a plan for his arrest.”
“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.
Within 24 hours of Scott being added to the Marshal's 15 most wanted list, he was in custody and awaiting extradition to Mississippi where he faces a 14-count indictment charging him with sexual battery, touching a child for lustful purposes, and exploitation of a child.
Scott is accused of raping and impregnating his 14-year-old step-daughter while his wife slept in their Mississippi home. According to police, the mother learned of the abuse after the daughter went to the hospital and learned that she was 10 weeks pregnant. A DNA test later confirmed that Scott was the father.
Scott was arrested and booked on multiple charges but ended up posting bond. In July 2018, shortly before he was due to appear back in court and expected to plead guilty, he staged his own death.
Investigators discovered a suicide note and a gun inside of a dinghy off the coast of Orange Beach in Alabama. A body was never recovered, nor was any forensic evidence that would indicate that a suicide had taken place. Investigators soon discovered that days before, Scott had a withdrawn $45,000 from his bank account.