 Austin,
TX – On April 4th, 2009, after 18 years as a fugitive, Edward Charles
Woods was captured by members of the United States Marshals Service,
Operation Intercept Fugitive Task Force in Columbia, South Carolina.
Woods was arrested and charged with Indecency
with a Child in Williamson County in 1990. Woods was subsequently released
on bond. On May 23, 1991, Woods failed to show up for court proceedings in
the case, and that is when his 18 year run from justice began.
Members of the Lone Star Fugitive Task Force in Austin recently began
investigating the Woods case and determined Woods had changed his name to
Edward Charles Aikens after he fled Williamson County and was living in
South Carolina. The task force in Austin contacted the US Marshals led
Operation Intercept Fugitive Task Force in South Carolina and they
determined that Woods was living in Columbia, SC. After several days of
surveillance, the task force arrested Woods at his home without incident.
Woods is currently being held at the Lexington County Detention Center where
he is awaiting extradition to Williamson County, Texas.
LaFayette Collins, United States Marshal for the Western District of Texas,
states, “The arrest of Woods demonstrates the long arm of the Lone Star
Fugitive Task Force, and that even after 18 years on the run, fugitives who
choose to flee the central Texas area will be caught and brought back to
Texas to face the consequences of their crimes.”
Members of the Lone Star Fugitive Task Force in Austin are the Austin Police
Department – Intelligence Unit, Williamson County Constable -Precinct 2,
Williamson County District Attorney’s Office, Hays, Travis, Williamson,
Bastrop, Caldwell County Sheriff’s Departments, Texas Rangers, and the U.S.
Marshals Service. |
