Convicted sex offender who failed to report to Austin Transitional Center captured
UPDATE: Matthew Ezekial Stager has been found and taken into custody in Washington D.C.
According to U.S. Marshals, Stager was observed walking down the street near the D.C. Superior Court by two Metropolitan Police Department officers, who had been made aware that Stager was believed to be in D.C. by U.S. Marshals. Stager was then taken into custody without incident. Stager is currently in the custody of U.S. Marshals in Washington D.C., pending transfer to Richmond, Virginia, to face the escape charge.
The U.S. Marshals Service is on the lookout and asking the public for help in locating a convicted sex offender who failed to report as ordered to an Austin transitional center following his release from a Virginia correctional facility on Thursday.
Matthew Ezekial Stager was furloughed from the Federal Correctional Complex in Petersburg, Virginia and was ordered to self-report to the Austin Transitional Center in Del Valle. Stager was provided transportation by the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to the Richmond International Airport but Stager failed to check in for his designated flight.
Once officials confirmed Stager didn't show up he was placed on escape status. The U.S. Marshals Service in Norfolk, Virginia was notified and an investigation began.
The Lone Star Fugitive Task Force in Austin has been alerted to Stager’s possible ties to the Austin area as Stager appears to have family here, with previous residency in Temple and Cedar Park prior to his federal conviction in 2013.
In 1999, Stager pleaded guilty to charges of indecency with a child and was convicted in Lincoln County, North Carolina.
The U.S. Marshals Service in Austin initiated an Adam Walsh Act investigation, based upon his failure to update his sex offender registration. Stager continued a transient lifestyle and went undetected until December 2012 when he was arrested in Bowling Green, Virginia.
Stager was extradited to Austin, pled guilty to violating the Adam Walsh Act. In February 2013, he was sentenced by the U.S. District Court to 60 months in the BOP. Stager was due to be released in July 2017.
Stager has a criminal history in seven states that includes dangerous drugs, failing to register, burglary, rape, and assault with a deadly weapon. His whereabouts are unknown at this time.
If you have any information concerning Stager’s location, please contact the Lone Star Fugitive Task Force at (512) 800-4213 (24 Hours) or your nearest law enforcement agency. Your identity will remain anonymous.