CAMANO ISLAND — There’s a new Colton Harris-Moore website, only this one is not out to make the teen serial burglar into any kind of an outlaw hero.
It’s called “Catch The Barefoot Bandit,” and it’s quickly becoming a rallying point for neighbors and victims to speak out against the 19-year-old and his crimes, as well as crimes he’s suspected of.
“His actions endanger communities,” the blog’s author said. The blogger is a Seattle man, 33, with ties to the island communities where Harris-Moore’s activities have resulted in convictions and a number of criminal charges.
Some of the burglar’s victims are friends of the Seattle man. He hopes to remain anonymous, fearing retaliation, and asked that his name not be published.
Harris-Moore has gained international notoriety, fueled in part by a Facebook fan page.
Since word spread that the teen may be piloting stolen planes without formal flight training, people online have encouraged the fugitive to “Fly, Colton, Fly,” and T-shirts supporting the fugitive have been flying off the shelves.
The new website also is selling T-shirts featuring Harris-Moore’s mug. One shows the teen behind bars. Another reads, “I support safe communities, not fake heroes.”
Reports that Harris-Moore sometimes runs barefoot helped spawn the nickname, “The Barefoot Bandit,” although police say the evidence doesn’t support the fable.
Now stories about the felon’s exploits have saturated the national media. There’s a feature about him in the current issue of Rolling Stone.
All that glorification needs balance, the blog’s author said.
“Any real community sentiments are being lost in the fan speak,” the man said. “Those communities should have a louder voice.”
The value of property allegedly stolen by Harris-Moore, including planes and boats, is well over $1.5 million, an analysis by The Herald found. There is no price on the feeling of safety lost after Harris-Moore’s burglaries, many have said. The teen escaped a juvenile halfway house in April 2008 and has been on the lam since.
He’s suspected of breaking into dozens of homes and business, stealing cars, four planes and boats.
Until last week, Harris-Moore was believed to be hiding out on Orcas Island. Then a trail of stolen boats led police back to the south end of Camano Island, Harris-Moore’s home turf.
Island County sheriff’s detective Ed Wallace, who has been tracking Harris-Moore for years, said there have been reports of a few suspicious incidents on Camano Island this week, but no firm evidence to connect it to the island’s notorious son.
“There hasn’t been a spike of like 500 all of a sudden,” Wallace said.
San Juan County sheriff’s officials named Harris-Moore as a suspect in the theft of a fishing boat reported stolen Saturday on Lopez Island. The boat was found drifting off Camano Island Sunday, causing residents to speculate that Harris-Moore had returned to Camano. Evidence from the stolen boat was collected and sent to the Washington State Patrol crime lab for processing, Wallace said.
If the evidence connects Harris-Moore to the boat theft, the new website likely will place that information in a section that seeks to inject reality to balance Harris-Moore myth.
The blog also provides victims a place to vent about Harris-Moore, as well as to purchase related merchandise, including T-shirts, coffee mugs, tote bags and neckties with parody images.
Most of the products poke fun at Harris-Moore, including a T-shirt that reads, “Turn yourself in and we’ll give you the second half of the flight manual, you know, the part about landing.” Two of the stolen planes linked to Harris-Moore crash landed; two others suffered minor damage.
Traffic on the blog is picking up and products are beginning to sell, the site’s owner said. The blog also has a way for people to contribute to a reward fund being offered for information leading to Harris-Moore’s arrest.
Wallace said he thinks the new blog is a good idea.
“From the beginning we’ve been against this whole hero mentality,” he said.
Meanwhile, Pam Kohler, Harris-Moore’s mother, said she’s been visited frequently by FBI agents at her Camano Island home. The FBI will not comment on its investigation.
Kohler said she’s offered to take a polygraph test to demonstrate that she’s not helping her son, but the FBI hasn’t accepted her proposal. She said she’s concerned for her boy’s well-being.
Wallace said he doesn’t know about the FBI’s investigative tactics, but he welcomes Kohler’s willingness to cooperate. He suggested she call Island County deputies.
Anyone caught providing assistance to Harris-Moore will be placed behind bars, Wallace said.
“We’ll charge them accordingly,” he said.
Reporter Jackson Holtz: 425-339-3437, jholtz@heraldnet.com.
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