HARRISBURG – The Pennsylvania State Police are asking for the public’s help in locating “absconded,” or wanted, sexual offenders throughout the commonwealth.
Pennsylvania’s Megan’s Law requires individuals convicted of a sexually violent offense to register with the Pennsylvania State Police and to update and verify their information periodically at an approved registration site.
Those offenders who have failed to register, update their information, or verify their information as required are considered to be non-compliant with the Megan’s Law statute. This non-compliance is a felony offense.
When this occurs, the Pennsylvania State Police Megan’s Law Section reaches out to the municipal police department or state police barracks that has jurisdiction where the offender resides to request a criminal investigation.
If the investigation has determined criminal charges are appropriate and the offender cannot be initially located, the municipal police department or local state police barracks obtains an arrest warrant for the non-compliant offender and notifies the Megan’s Law Section of the warrant. Once a warrant is issued for their arrest, they are considered “absconded.”
A list of these absconded offenders can be found on the Pennsylvania State Police Megan’s Law Web site at www.pameganslaw.state.pa.us by clicking on “View all Non-Compliant Offenders” and selecting “absconded” from the drop down menu.
Users can view the offenders and even submit a tip to help locate an offender. Anyone with a tip can also call the Megan’s Law Section at 1-866-771-3170. As of Dec. 2, there were 145 offenders with an active arrest warrant for failing to comply with the registration requirements.
Pennsylvania’s rate of sexual offender non-compliance or absconded offenders is 1.83 percent, which is well below the national average.
For more information about the Pennsylvania State Police, visit their Web site at www.psp.pa.gov.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Attached is a document containing information for all currently absconded offenders. A photo, year of birth, last known address, and police department handling the investigation is listed for each offender.