LOUISVILLE, KY -- The U.S. Marshals added “deadbeat dad” Byron Keith Perkins and his girlfriend Lea Ann Howard to their 15 Most Wanted fugitive list on March 19, 2006 to track down the man who promised to donate a kidney to his ailing son, but skipped town instead. This callous act resulted in his being dubbed the “most hated man in America.”

Byron Keith Perkins and Lea Ann Howard were arrested in Puerto Vallarta and were being flown to Los Angeles for a court hearing Thursday. The court appearance will be to arrange for their return to Louisville to face federal charges.

Perkins failed to return to custody in January 2006 after undergoing compatibility tests to see whether he could donate a kidney to his son.  Perkins was incarcerated awaiting sentencing for marijuana distribution and unlawful transport of firearms. He faced at least 25 years for those charges, which were filed while he was serving a supervised release from a North Carolina sentence for bank robbery. He was temporarily released from custody when it was determined his teenage son needed a kidney transplant. Read more at www.usmarshals.gov .

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