U.S. marshals deputies are looking for a fugitive child sex offender, and they are asking the public for information that can lead to his arrest before anyone else is placed in danger.
Wallace Utley, 58, was convicted after an attack on a 10-year-old boy outside a library in Northwest Washington.
Deputy Marshal Jason Matthew said Utley is homeless, making it difficult for authorities to pin him down.
"Utley is homeless, therefore making him unpredictable. We cannot have him roaming free in the community," said Matthew, of the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force.
According to charging documents, on June 4, 2009, a boy was waiting for his mother outside the Mt. Pleasant Interim Library at 3160 16th St. NW, when he was attacked. Utley grabbed the boy from behind in a bearhug and began fondling the boy while grunting and moaning. The boy screamed and broke away as his mother watched helplessly from about 30 feet away.
"What's wrong?" Utley asked. "I'm only trying to hug you."
Utley then ran down an alley. He was arrested three blocks away trying to board a bus.
Now, police are looking for Utley again. Utley is wanted for violating the terms of his probation and failing to register as a sex offender.
He is described as being 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds, and is known to frequent the areas of Petworth and Columbia Heights. His rap sheet includes arrests for unlawful property entry and assault with a dangerous weapon.
Anyone with information regarding Utley's whereabouts is urged to call Deputy Matthew or the U.S. Marshals Service at 301-489-1717 or 800-336-0102.
Since 2008, federal authorities have credited readers of The Washington Examiner with the capture of 43 fugitives, including murderers, kidnappers, child sex offenders, rapists and scam artists.
At least eight captured fugitives were convicted killers or wanted on a homicide charge.
Last month, a reader's tip led directly to the arrest of a fugitive sex offender who impregnated a 14-year-old when he was 31.
The Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, run by the U.S. Marshals Service, is composed of 30 federal, state and local agencies from Baltimore to Norfolk.
