FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FOR INFORMATION CONTACT: March 6, 2008   Matt Hershey Deputy U.S. Marshal Public Information Officer (602) 920-4841   Escapee Arrested in Valley   Phoenix, AZ - Early this morning members of the HEAT Fugitive Task Force consisting of state and local partners led by the U.S. Marshals captured escapee Frank Banashley Jr., in a motel in Mesa. Officers began hunting for Banashley Jr. in early February when he escaped from a half-way house in Phoenix, where he was ordered to reside at immediately prior to his release from prison. Early this morning, Deputies developed information that Banashley Jr. was hiding at a motel in Mesa, at which time he was arrested without incident. In 1999 Banashley Jr. was convicted in U.S. District Court for Accessory after the Fact to the murder of a police officer on the White Mountain Apache Indian Reservation. This conviction was the result of an incident which occurred when Banashley Jr. and his father Frank Banashley Sr. were pulled over on a traffic stop by a Police Officer of the White Mountain Apache Reservation. During the traffic stop a physical altercation ensued which resulted in Banashley Sr. shooting and killing the Officer. Banashley Jr. was ordered to serve 108 months in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons for his part in the murder, whereas Banashley Sr. was sentenced to 42 years in prison for his role. United States Marshal David Gonzales praised the work of Deputies and law enforcement officers adding, “The level of interagency cooperation exhibited during this operation was second to none, this resulted in the capture of a violent felon and made the Valley a safer place.” The HIDTA Task Force agencies include: United States Marshals Service, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Mesa Police Department, Arizona Department of Public Safety, Maricopa County Probation Office, Phoenix Police Department, Chandler Police Department, Surprise Police Department, Scottsdale Police Department and the U.S. Postal Service. For further information about the U.S. Marshals: www.usmarshals.gov <http://www.usmarshals.gov>