The story just doesn't pass the smell test:
"‘Barefoot Bandit’ enters guilty plea; Any earnings from book, movie deals will go to victims" by Manuel Valdes, Associated Press / June 18, 2011
SEATTLE — The young Washington-state man who gained international notoriety during a two-year run from the law in stolen boats, cars, and planes pleaded guilty yesterday to seven charges in the “Barefoot Bandit’’ case.
Under a plea agreement, Colton Harris-Moore would forfeit any future earnings from movie, book, or other deals from selling his story. Earnings would be used to pay off the $1.4 million in restitution he owes to his many victims....
Prosecutors have said Harris-Moore hopscotched his way across the United States, frequently crash-landing planes in rural areas and stealing cars from parking lots at small airports.
And was never killed or injured, huh?
I mean, Wellstone died.
His escapades earned him cult status as an authority-mocking folk hero, and he earned the “Barefoot Bandit’’ moniker by committing some of crimes without shoes.
Harris-Moore, now 20, smiled and greeted his lawyers as he entered the courtroom yesterday.
And what kid could get away with this?
He sat quietly — sometimes smiling, sometimes holding his hands and looking down — as federal Judge Richard Jones went over the details of the crimes.
“We’re here today to say that Mr. Harris-Moore’s flight from justice has ended,’’ US Attorney Jenny Durkan said after the hearing. “He’s taken the first step to take responsibility for his actions.’’
So when are the war criminals and and Wall Street looters going to do that?
The federal charges, which included stealing an aircraft, possession of firearms, and piloting without license, stemmed from a spate of crimes in late 2009 and early 2010, when Harris-Moore was accused of flying a stolen plane from Anacortes, in northwestern Washington, to the San Juan Islands.
And NOTHING on RADAR about an UNSCHEDULED FLIGHT PATH or ANYTHING ELSE after 9/11?
Authorities say he then stole a pistol in eastern British Columbia and took a plane from a hangar in Idaho, where investigators found bare footprints on the floor and wall. That plane crashed near Granite Falls, Wash., after it ran out of fuel, prosecutors said.
He made his way to Oregon in a 32-foot boat stolen in southwestern Washington, stopping first to leave $100 at an animal shelter in Raymond, Wash. From Oregon, authorities said, Harris-Moore traveled across the United States.
In Indiana, he stole another plane and made for the Bahamas, where he was captured last July.
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Globe needs to soak those feet because they stink.
