SEATTLE — A cotton exporter who escaped from a federal penitentiary in Virginia more than eight years ago is now behind bars in Seattle.
The King County Sheriff’s Office says deputies in SeaTac arrested Edward Porta at a motel near the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Wednesday following tips that came in after Porta was featured on the local program “Washington’s Most Wanted.”
Porta pleaded guilty in 2005 in federal court in North Carolina to a charge of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
At the time of his 2008 escape from a federal penitentiary satellite camp in Lee County, Porta was serving 38 months in prison for his role in a cotton import and export scheme that defrauded the federal government.
Authorities aren’t sure why Porta was in the Seattle area or how long he had been there.
U.S. Marshals are expected to take custody of Porta.
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