A convicted rapist who for decades has been on the run from the law was captured by police this week.
According to The Boston Globe, 52-year-old Gary Irving has been on the Massachusetts State Police Most Wanted list for the past 34 years, since a fateful day in 1979 when the convicted serial rapist fled from his Massachusetts home.
Irving, who was found guilty in Norfolk County, Mass., of raping three young women, including a 16-year-old girl, was arrested Wednesday in his home in Gorham, Maine.
Reuters reports that Irving had been sentenced to life in prison in 1979, but that he had fled after the judge in his case chose to delay his sentence by two days to allow him to make arrangements before his prison term started.
For decades, Massachusetts State Police have been searching for the fugitive. Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey said that law enforcement officers had previously followed leads across New England and several states, including Georgia, Colorado and Florida, in search of Irving.
In the interim, Irving has been living under the name Gregg Irving. He has been married for 29 years and has two children, according to Boston's WCVB.com.
Reports the Boston Globe, Irving and his wife were about to tuck their granddaughter into bed Wednesday night, when police showed up at the couple's home. Irving's wife has since said that she had "no knowledge of his true identity."
An 18-year-old female neighbor of Irving's said that she was shocked to learn of his real identity.
“It actually kind of freaks me out because I never shut my shades,” Alyssa Lurvey told the Boston Globe. “We don’t lock our door. I don’t know what I would do if he decided to walk in one day, come up to my room. That’s really, really scary.”
Police say they found numerous guns at Irving's home. He will face federal charges for illegal firearms possession, Reuters reports.
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