Among them: Go skydiving and ride his motorcycle along the Pacific Coast Highway.
Tech. Sgt. David Lawrence Helm, 35, apparently did cross a few things off his list before being arrested in Reno, Nev., on Monday night. The Nevada Highway Patrol stopped him on Interstate 580 because his motorcycle’s taillight was out and discovered he was wanted for being a military fugitive and deserter. A woman with him was not taken into custody.
On the way to the Washoe County Jail in Reno, Helm sat handcuffed in the back seat of a patrol car and told the trooper why he did what he did.
“Mr. Helm told the trooper he wanted to accomplish a few things on his bucket list before he was captured,” said Trooper Dave Gibson, a spokesman for the Nevada Highway Patrol.
Helm told troopers he had just left Las Vegas, where he went skydiving and drove a McLaren sports car on a racetrack, Gibson said. And he still wanted to go to the West Coast, ride Highway 1 and visit the Redwood Forest, Gibson said.
Helm was to face trial this week by court-martial for alleged offenses including sexual assault, sexual abuse of a child, indecent filming or photographing private areas of another person without consent and simple assault. The trial was scheduled to start Monday and wrap up Saturday.
The charges stem from alleged incidents in Dayton, Ohio; Gatlinburg, Tenn.; La Follette, Tenn.; and Scott Air Force Base, Ill., and involved two victims. Charges identify the first victim as being a girl between the ages of 12 and 16. No description is given for the second alleged victim. According to the charges, the alleged crimes happened as far back as January 2012.
Helm was last seen at Scott Air Force Base the afternoon of May 29, according to a flier posted on a family Facebook page. His last communication to friends was that he was traveling to La Follette to visit his parents. He had not been heard from since, the flier said.
Helm wasn’t alone on his trip. He was accompanied by a woman in her 30s from the Philippines. The trooper offered her a taxi ride from the spot along I-580 where they were stopped at about 9:45 p.m. Monday. She agreed and went on her way. The motorcycle, Helm’s Yamaha FZ8 with an Illinois plate, was impounded.
Authorities say he will be moved from the county jail soon to the custody of officials at either Beale or Nellis air force base.
Air Force officials will decide on any new charges, according to Linda Card, a spokeswoman for the Air Force Office of Special Investigations in Quantico, Va. Authorities haven’t determined when he will be brought back to Illinois to stand trial.
Helm works with the 375th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron.
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