VintageEyes
07-11-2003, 10:28 PM
Ky. Cops Looking for Convicted Molester
By ROGER ALFORD
LOUISA, Ky. (AP) - As jurors deliberated his fate on child molestation charges, Truman Evans stepped outside of the courthouse of this small Appalachian community for what he said was a breath of fresh air.
But in the mere 30 minutes it took the jury to convict the former Baptist minister, Evans slipped away in a Buick he rented before the trial and parked near the courthouse.
Evans, 57, hasn't been seen since he fled July 1, and authorities are cautioning churches to be on the lookout for a man they say will manipulate people and is a potential threat to their children.
``If he surfaces, I believe it's going to be in a church environment,'' said Detective Rob Garnes, lead investigator for the state police.
Deputy Sheriff Rick May said while everyone was concentrating on the two-day trial, Evans, who was free on $50,000 bond, was biding his time and waiting to execute a plan to keep him from being sent to the prison where he had once worked as a guard.
Evans had taken the stand earlier in the day, claiming his two young accusers made up the stories about being molested because he had spanked them.
In case jurors didn't buy his story, May said, Evans had rented a bronze 2003 Buick Century the day before his trial began and parked it near the courthouse.
The car was found Friday afternoon at an Ashland shopping mall.
Garnes said the night Evans was convicted, he paid $4,880 cash for a purple 1998 Pontiac Sunfire at a car dealership in nearby Ironton, Ohio. Evans used an alias to register the car, Garnes told The Daily Independent of Ashland.
The salesperson recognized Evans and called police, Garnes said. The salesperson had driven Evans to the mall to leave the Buick, Garnes told the newspaper.
May theorizes that Evans, who arrived at court each day in a different car, planned to sit through the trial, then drive away in the rental car while the jury deliberated. That way, May said he could return and face misdemeanor bail-jumping charges if he was acquitted - or not return at all if he was convicted of the sodomy charges.
``He may have even left the country,'' May said. ``We really don't know.''
Jurors convicted Evans of first-degree sodomy and criminal attempt to commit first-degree sodomy for forcing the two children to perform oral sex on him. They recommended a life sentence, plus 20 years.
Garnes said Evans' ministry at the Bradley Gap Free Will Baptist Church ended amid allegations of an adulterous relationship and drunkenness. Testimony about those allegations was not permitted in the trial.
Garnes said Evans will likely prey on other children if he has an opportunity. The next victims, Garnes said, could be anywhere.
``If I had to guess, I would say he has left the area,'' Garnes said.
John David Preston, the attorney who represented Evans in the trial, said the evidence was ``hotly contested'' and he believes the conviction could be overturned on appeal.
Prosecutor Tom Skeans described Evans as a self-centered man who abused the children with no concern for anyone other than himself.
This guy was in my hometown! :mad: :eek:
By ROGER ALFORD
LOUISA, Ky. (AP) - As jurors deliberated his fate on child molestation charges, Truman Evans stepped outside of the courthouse of this small Appalachian community for what he said was a breath of fresh air.
But in the mere 30 minutes it took the jury to convict the former Baptist minister, Evans slipped away in a Buick he rented before the trial and parked near the courthouse.
Evans, 57, hasn't been seen since he fled July 1, and authorities are cautioning churches to be on the lookout for a man they say will manipulate people and is a potential threat to their children.
``If he surfaces, I believe it's going to be in a church environment,'' said Detective Rob Garnes, lead investigator for the state police.
Deputy Sheriff Rick May said while everyone was concentrating on the two-day trial, Evans, who was free on $50,000 bond, was biding his time and waiting to execute a plan to keep him from being sent to the prison where he had once worked as a guard.
Evans had taken the stand earlier in the day, claiming his two young accusers made up the stories about being molested because he had spanked them.
In case jurors didn't buy his story, May said, Evans had rented a bronze 2003 Buick Century the day before his trial began and parked it near the courthouse.
The car was found Friday afternoon at an Ashland shopping mall.
Garnes said the night Evans was convicted, he paid $4,880 cash for a purple 1998 Pontiac Sunfire at a car dealership in nearby Ironton, Ohio. Evans used an alias to register the car, Garnes told The Daily Independent of Ashland.
The salesperson recognized Evans and called police, Garnes said. The salesperson had driven Evans to the mall to leave the Buick, Garnes told the newspaper.
May theorizes that Evans, who arrived at court each day in a different car, planned to sit through the trial, then drive away in the rental car while the jury deliberated. That way, May said he could return and face misdemeanor bail-jumping charges if he was acquitted - or not return at all if he was convicted of the sodomy charges.
``He may have even left the country,'' May said. ``We really don't know.''
Jurors convicted Evans of first-degree sodomy and criminal attempt to commit first-degree sodomy for forcing the two children to perform oral sex on him. They recommended a life sentence, plus 20 years.
Garnes said Evans' ministry at the Bradley Gap Free Will Baptist Church ended amid allegations of an adulterous relationship and drunkenness. Testimony about those allegations was not permitted in the trial.
Garnes said Evans will likely prey on other children if he has an opportunity. The next victims, Garnes said, could be anywhere.
``If I had to guess, I would say he has left the area,'' Garnes said.
John David Preston, the attorney who represented Evans in the trial, said the evidence was ``hotly contested'' and he believes the conviction could be overturned on appeal.
Prosecutor Tom Skeans described Evans as a self-centered man who abused the children with no concern for anyone other than himself.
This guy was in my hometown! :mad: :eek: