Collins was charged this morning by Deputy U.S. Marshals serving on the New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force (NHJFTF). Collins made his initial court appearance at 2:00 p.m. today in the United States District Court. "John Collins is the first sex offender to be charged under the new federal law in New Hampshire," said U.S. Marshal Stephen Monier. "In an effort to protect our families, friends, and community, we will continue to pursue sexual predators with the assistance our state and local law enforcement partners."

In early March, 2007, Collins was arrested by the New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force in Haverhill, Massachusetts on an outstanding warrant for a parole violation out of the State of New Hampshire. Collins’ original conviction in the State of New Hampshire was for Aggravated Felonious Sexual Assault on a child, which requires Collins to register as a sex offender. On July 12, 2007, Collins was indicted by a grand jury in U.S. District Court in Concord, NH with Failing to Register and Update Registration as required by Title 18 USC Section 2250.

In September, 2000, Collins entered a plea of guilty to two counts of Aggravated Felonious Sexual Assault of a Child in Hillsborough County Superior Court- South. He was sentenced to serve 3-10 years in prison and required to register as a sex offender for life. In May, 2004, Collins was released on parole from the New Hampshire State Prison in Concord, and Collins registered with the Sex Offender Registry Board as required. In February, 2006, a warrant was issued for violating the conditions of his parole. Collins fled his last known address, and in March of 2007, members of the NHJFTF located and arrested Collins in Haverhill, Massachusetts, where he had been residing.

On July 27, 2006, President Bush signed the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 into law. The Act provides that, "In order to protect the public from sex offenders and offenders against children...", "the Attorney General shall use the resources of Federal law enforcement, including the United States Marshals Service, to assist jurisdictions in locating and apprehending sex offenders who violate sex offender registration requirements."

The NHJFTF was formed in the fall of 2002, and is a U.S. Marshals-led task force based in Concord, NH. The NHJFTF relies on the support of local, state, and Federal law enforcement agencies to accomplish its fugitive apprehension mission. At present, the NHJFTF is comprised of all ten county Sheriff Departments, the NH State Police and many local and federal law enforcement agencies. The United States Marshal for the District of New Hampshire, Stephen Monier, said "The apprehension and charging of Collins under the Adam Walsh Child Protection Act is a demonstration of the dedication of the New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force, and the strong desire of the U.S. Marshals Service to help protect our communities.”

To date, The New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force has apprehended over 1200 state and local fugitives. Last year, the U.S. Marshals Service cleared over 95,000 felony warrants, including more than 38,000 Federal warrants and 46,800 state and local warrants.

For more information about the U.S. Marshals Service and The New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force, go to www.usmarshals.gov and http://www.usmarshals.gov/district/nh/index.html.

For information on the apprehension, please contact:
Warrant/Task Force Coordinator, Jeffrey White at (603) 225-1632

For information on the criminal case, contact:
The United States Attorney's Office at (603) 225-1552.